Conference
Genealogies of Memory 2026: The Lasting Presence of the Past: How Trauma Lives on Across Generations?
How is memory transmitted across generations? Through which processes, practices and media does this transmission occur, and how does it become visible? In what ways do the memories of one generation intersect/blend with those of the next to produce new mnemonic constellations and spaces of meaning? The process of transmission from one generation to another encompasses knowledge, memories and their emotional constellations, and is shaped by the surrounding cultural and societal context. This transmission occurs through various mechanisms, including different mnemonic layers and practices, and ranging from a personal level, such as through storytelling within families to cultural practices during commemorations, to historical narratives reinforced by education and in museums. It draws on both tangible and intangible remnants of the past. When disturbing events, due to their traumatic character, shape the memories of one generation, the transmission chain undergoes transformations that affect both the modes of recollecting and remembering the past and its content, as well as pre-established intergenerational connections. In the last century, Central and Eastern European countries experienced many traumatic events – wars, genocides, forced displacements and political repression – that created fertile ground for conflictual memories, which were further amplified globally by traumas generated elsewhere through colonial policies.
Traumas act as multiple distorting mirrors, preventing the smooth transmission between generations, fragmenting and (re)shaping memories, and repeatedly questioning the meaning, validity and significance of these memories, as well as the lives of those caught in this web of traumatic effects. Consequently, the possibility of representing trauma is questioned, and new ways of transmitting and (re)working the past become necessary (LaCapra, 2001).
For the second or third generation – those who did not directly experience the events – a process of reconstruction through collaborative remembering begins to unfold, while gaps in knowledge and memory are filled through the search for stories and remnants of the past and through accessing layers of collective narratives (Mitroiu, 2023). Family and/or community memories are supplemented by documentation processes through which collective registers of memory, such as archives, are used to assemble a shared memory. Active engagement with narrative and the (re)interpretation of past events transforms and shapes collective memory, defining the roles of agents of memory (ranging from institutions and political actors to individuals and private initiatives).
Postmemory is closely associated with the intergenerational transmission of trauma (Hirsch, 1997; 2012), and it is widely used to refer to the reconstruction of past narratives by the second generation (Schwab, 2010). Traumatic experiences are transmitted through the first generation’s recounting of events, creating a fragmentary understanding of the past for the next generation. In response, a reconstructive process based on documenting past traumas helps the second and/or third generation come to terms with the past.
This memory studies conference examines processes of transmission, transgenerational trauma, the different forms and the responses they generate, as well as the absences and silences surrounding these transmissions in different political, cultural and social contexts and through various media. Particular emphasis will be placed on Central and Eastern Europe viewed from a comparative perspective with other regions of the world. By bringing together scholars from diverse disciplines, the conference will critically engage not only with the continuing presence of the past but also with the reappropriation of past traumas, the binary and hegemonic discourse surrounding traumatic histories, the silencing of trauma narratives and the emergence of alternative histories. The academic event will reflect on the possibilities of dialogic histories and memories of trauma (Rothberg, 2009), also considering current challenges posed by antagonistic and echo-chamber dynamics in a digitally mediated memory discourse.
The conference will centre on four main aspects:
1. Processuality of transgenerational trauma transmission: This theme explores the processes, patterns and variations occurring in transmission, including silences and expressions of transgenerational trauma, while questioning generational roles within this process.
2. Hegemonic histories of trauma, counter-memories and dialogic practices: This topic examines, on the one hand, the patterns of memory created by power systems and hegemonic discourses and, on the other hand, the chances of alternative voices and expressions being created, maintained and having an impact in the face of hegemonic discourse, drawing attention to the dangers of silencing traumas and memories.
3. Artistic and reconstructive practices and forms of memory work: This theme examines the role of art within the field of memory work on the one hand, and reconstructive practices and forms on the other hand, through which second- and third-generation individuals engage with traumatic pasts they did not directly experience. It focuses on processes of postmemory, collaborative remembering, documentation and reinterpretation, as well as the use of archives, cultural artefacts and institutional memory registers, while also addressing the risks of reconstruction and representation, including fragmentation, over-identification and gaps in transmission.
4. Digital mediation of trauma and memory: This theme analyses current challenges posed by online media, including the use of past traumas to generate polarised opinions, aggressive speech and echo chambers, while also highlighting the capacity of digital spaces to challenge official narratives, critically examine widely accepted accounts of trauma and produce personal, interconnected stories and interpretations.
By integrating theoretical perspectives with challenging empirical case studies, the conference aims to foster a space for dialogue between past traumas and ongoing traumatic situations in different regions of the world. Comparative and interdisciplinary studies are particularly welcome.
We propose the following thematic blocks for presentations, although other proposals are also welcome:
● The understanding of transgenerational trauma – theoretical aspects
● (In)tangible traces of past traumas: how remnants of the past respond to the present
● Absences, silences and ruptures in trauma transmission
● Agents of memory, memory practices and transgenerational engagement with trauma
● The role of the arts in representing and transmitting trauma
● Digital technologies and new challenges
Deadline for submissions: 3 May 2026
Apply by filling out the following form: https://forms.office.com/e/sL9xyG5DPk
References:
Hirsch, M. (1997) Family Frames: Photography, Narrative and Postmemory. Harvard University Press.
Hirsch, M. (2012) The Generation of Postmemory: Writing and Visual Culture After the Holocaust. Columbia University Press.
LaCapra, D. (2001) Writing History, Writing Trauma. John Hopkins University Press.
Mitroiu, S. (2023) ‘Dialogic Memories in Graphic Narratives: Intergenerational Entanglements of Witnessing, Trauma and Vulnerability.’ Parallax, 29(1), 67–83.
Rothberg, M. (2009) Multidirectional Memory: Remembering the Holocaust in the Age of Decolonization. Stanford University Press.
Schwab, G. (2010) Haunting legacies: violent histories and transgenerational trauma. Columbia University Press.
Traumas act as multiple distorting mirrors, preventing the smooth transmission between generations, fragmenting and (re)shaping memories, and repeatedly questioning the meaning, validity and significance of these memories, as well as the lives of those caught in this web of traumatic effects. Consequently, the possibility of representing trauma is questioned, and new ways of transmitting and (re)working the past become necessary (LaCapra, 2001).
For the second or third generation – those who did not directly experience the events – a process of reconstruction through collaborative remembering begins to unfold, while gaps in knowledge and memory are filled through the search for stories and remnants of the past and through accessing layers of collective narratives (Mitroiu, 2023). Family and/or community memories are supplemented by documentation processes through which collective registers of memory, such as archives, are used to assemble a shared memory. Active engagement with narrative and the (re)interpretation of past events transforms and shapes collective memory, defining the roles of agents of memory (ranging from institutions and political actors to individuals and private initiatives).
Postmemory is closely associated with the intergenerational transmission of trauma (Hirsch, 1997; 2012), and it is widely used to refer to the reconstruction of past narratives by the second generation (Schwab, 2010). Traumatic experiences are transmitted through the first generation’s recounting of events, creating a fragmentary understanding of the past for the next generation. In response, a reconstructive process based on documenting past traumas helps the second and/or third generation come to terms with the past.
This memory studies conference examines processes of transmission, transgenerational trauma, the different forms and the responses they generate, as well as the absences and silences surrounding these transmissions in different political, cultural and social contexts and through various media. Particular emphasis will be placed on Central and Eastern Europe viewed from a comparative perspective with other regions of the world. By bringing together scholars from diverse disciplines, the conference will critically engage not only with the continuing presence of the past but also with the reappropriation of past traumas, the binary and hegemonic discourse surrounding traumatic histories, the silencing of trauma narratives and the emergence of alternative histories. The academic event will reflect on the possibilities of dialogic histories and memories of trauma (Rothberg, 2009), also considering current challenges posed by antagonistic and echo-chamber dynamics in a digitally mediated memory discourse.
The conference will centre on four main aspects:
1. Processuality of transgenerational trauma transmission: This theme explores the processes, patterns and variations occurring in transmission, including silences and expressions of transgenerational trauma, while questioning generational roles within this process.
2. Hegemonic histories of trauma, counter-memories and dialogic practices: This topic examines, on the one hand, the patterns of memory created by power systems and hegemonic discourses and, on the other hand, the chances of alternative voices and expressions being created, maintained and having an impact in the face of hegemonic discourse, drawing attention to the dangers of silencing traumas and memories.
3. Artistic and reconstructive practices and forms of memory work: This theme examines the role of art within the field of memory work on the one hand, and reconstructive practices and forms on the other hand, through which second- and third-generation individuals engage with traumatic pasts they did not directly experience. It focuses on processes of postmemory, collaborative remembering, documentation and reinterpretation, as well as the use of archives, cultural artefacts and institutional memory registers, while also addressing the risks of reconstruction and representation, including fragmentation, over-identification and gaps in transmission.
4. Digital mediation of trauma and memory: This theme analyses current challenges posed by online media, including the use of past traumas to generate polarised opinions, aggressive speech and echo chambers, while also highlighting the capacity of digital spaces to challenge official narratives, critically examine widely accepted accounts of trauma and produce personal, interconnected stories and interpretations.
By integrating theoretical perspectives with challenging empirical case studies, the conference aims to foster a space for dialogue between past traumas and ongoing traumatic situations in different regions of the world. Comparative and interdisciplinary studies are particularly welcome.
We propose the following thematic blocks for presentations, although other proposals are also welcome:
● The understanding of transgenerational trauma – theoretical aspects
● (In)tangible traces of past traumas: how remnants of the past respond to the present
● Absences, silences and ruptures in trauma transmission
● Agents of memory, memory practices and transgenerational engagement with trauma
● The role of the arts in representing and transmitting trauma
● Digital technologies and new challenges
Deadline for submissions: 3 May 2026
Apply by filling out the following form: https://forms.office.com/e/sL9xyG5DPk
References:
Hirsch, M. (1997) Family Frames: Photography, Narrative and Postmemory. Harvard University Press.
Hirsch, M. (2012) The Generation of Postmemory: Writing and Visual Culture After the Holocaust. Columbia University Press.
LaCapra, D. (2001) Writing History, Writing Trauma. John Hopkins University Press.
Mitroiu, S. (2023) ‘Dialogic Memories in Graphic Narratives: Intergenerational Entanglements of Witnessing, Trauma and Vulnerability.’ Parallax, 29(1), 67–83.
Rothberg, M. (2009) Multidirectional Memory: Remembering the Holocaust in the Age of Decolonization. Stanford University Press.
Schwab, G. (2010) Haunting legacies: violent histories and transgenerational trauma. Columbia University Press.