After visiting the National Mall for the purpose of observing identity and people’s reactions, I came to the conclusion that monuments and memorials are largely what the viewer makes of them. Growing up about an hour away from Washington, D.C. this was not my first time seeing the National Mall. However, it was the first time I began to appreciate it. Perhaps because I am older or perhaps because Washington, D.C. is where I live now, but I was able to view the monuments for what they stood for more so than how magnificent and pretty they looked. However, I did bring along my personal experiences as I looked at the memorials. Since my grandfather fought in World War II and has gotten so old that it is one of the only experiences he remembers, the WWII memorial had a greater impact on me since I had that personal connection. I felt almost guilty not having such a connection with the other memorials.
I realized how important having an association with the memorials was because I felt almost no emotional impact looking at the Lincoln or Korean War memorials. On the other hand, I felt a surge of emotions with the World War II and it reminded me of how emotional I felt when I visited the gravestone, or “memorial,” of my grandmother. Since I obviously had a close connection with my own grandmother, I was able to think of memories and stories that she had told me growing up. I was reminded of this experience when I felt something at the WWII memorial. I realized that everyone, because of their unique incidents and memories, approaches the monuments in a different way with varying significance towards each.
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This is a very good point - every one has their own investment in different memorials, depending on their background. I think it's really sad that soon, or rather, at some point, no one visiting the memorials will have a direct connection to any of the wars commemorated. And even though that's really the point of the memorials: to remember and feel connected to the wars and the people involved in them. But the memorial's themselves aren't enough, I think. The perosnal connections; our grandfather's stories and other relatives or people we know allow us to travel with them to a horrible time in their lives. We visit the memorials in their honor...what will happen when people don't have anyone they know personally to honor? Then the memorials will just be another place...I can't even think of an example of a memorial that has been lost with time. This is a stretch: the Pyramid's in Egypt were built to commemorate the Pharoah's buried within them and send them to the afterlife. They are a form of memorial (I told you this was a stretch) but now, all they are is a "Wonder of the World": a tourist attraction to the umpteenth degree.
ReplyDeleteIs this what is in store for the War memorial's at the National Mall?? Opinions? Thoughts? Comments?
That's a good point. I feel like that could happen especially with the memorials commemorating the lives lost during the Wars. Even for me one out of the three war memorials at the National Mall stand to hold a major significance for me. What about the next generation? I feel like that will lessen for future generations as well. I feel like the National Mall monuments will always have some significance, but even now they are beginning to be merely a tourist trap. When someone you know goes to D.C. one of the first things people ask them is did you see the monuments? Sadly, I feel it's already begun.
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