On relations between memory and politics, The contributions of Hannah Arendt’s work to the field of memory studies

Abstract

With the aim of contributing towards the theoretical discussion within the field of memory studies, in this paper I analyse the relationship between memory and politics on Hannah Arendt’s thought. Using an interpretative-hermeneutic approach as a methodological perspective to study their work, I revise her notion of politics and its connection with her notions of history, storytelling and remembrance. Her work, I sustain, allow us to affirm the existence of a constitutive bond between memory and politics, because of the essential role that memory plays in the establishment and maintenance of the public realm, which is necessary for the deployment of the political action.