World Heritage and Cultural Studies Preethi Mohan

Lehrstuhl Interkulturalitat 3265734

UNESCO Chair in Heritage Studies mohanpre@TU-Cottbus.de
Manuel Peters
Manuel.peters@TU-cottbus.de

Written Report
Session 2

Theorizing Heritage

Barbara Kirshenblatt -Gimblett
New York University

1. Questions/issues author is dealing with?

i. Attempt to theorize heritage
ii. Divide between academic and public folklore/ist
iii. Which is good or bad Folklore or Heritage
iv. Actual destination and virtual places

2. Important insights that I gained?

i. Invention of tradition by Eric Hobsbawm and Terence Ranger
ii. How it is important for folklore to reimagine itself in a transformed
disciplinary and cultural landscape in order to survive rather than defend
its status quo
iii. The increasingly famous Heritage as a product, viable commercially. An
industry constantly being targeted and intensified with more value add
features.

3. New terms to me?

i. Oxford dictionary codified, that folklore meant misinformation
ii. Various authors and their works mentioned in this paper

4. What questions would I ask the author?

i. Has the author succeeded in her attempts of theorizing heritage?
ii. How would she go about reviving the many lost folklorists around the
world?

5. What did I like about the text?

The authors sense to go beyond just being producers to being active
conservationists is seen throughout the text, which rubs on to the readers.
Beyond that there are particular parts of the text which I liked the best:
In the sixties in the United States, tradition was still a given. It was not yet
invented. (Pg: 367)
A second life as folklore is just not as good, from their perspective, as a
first life as faith. (Pg: 368)
If heritage as we know it from the industry were sustainable, it would not
require protection. (Pg: 370)
World Heritage and Cultural Studies Preethi Mohan
Lehrstuhl Interkulturalitat 3265734
UNESCO Chair in Heritage Studies mohanpre@TU-Cottbus.de
Manuel Peters
Manuel.peters@TU-cottbus.de

Written Report
Session 2
One way to shift the ground is to anchor the issues in cases where
authenticity is irrelevant or where it ceases to explain everything. (Pg:
375)