ePub Sensational Modernism: Experimental Fiction and Photography in Thirties America (Cultural Studies of the United States) by Joseph B. Entin in Arts-Photography

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A Start in the Analysis of Presenting History through PerformanceBy Roger D. Launiushe challenge of presenting the past has long been a topic of discussion among museum professionals; historians both academic and other; as well as a broad cross-section of those interested in heritage and the heritage industry. One of the means in which they do seek to present this past is through historical reenactments of all types. Sometimes these are formalized processes of costumed interpreters at such historical sites as Colonial Williamsburg and Fort Snelling. Sometimes these are recreations of events such as the highly effective Greensboro Lunch Counter program at the National Museum of American History. Sometimes these are completely grassroots activities such as the many battle reenactments of Civil War aficionados.Regardless of the manner in which these are developed; nurtured; and practiced; the question of authenticity is central to its unfolding. In the case of many such activities the authenticity is mostly about the costumes and perhaps the accoutrements of the activity. In the case of Colonial Williamsburg that authenticity reflects not only those concerns but also the personification of individuals and their backgrounds.This collection of essays seeks to get to the question of authenticity in a variety of settings from historic sites to pageants to reenactments. In each case the objectives and the approaches are somewhat different. This is an uneven collection of case studies written; it seems without much in the way of editorial direction by the various essayists. It could have been an important set of cases had the editors imposed some rigor on the essayists and sought to extract some broader ideas that could inform the field. As it is; the essays may be read on their own merits but as a work the whole is less than the sum of its parts.Accordingly; if it is not already understood; I must to admit to a bit of disappointment with this book. I had expected that Enacting History would be a set of related analyses of the manner in which historic sites; Civil War reenactors; etc.; approached their efforts to depict the past. Some of that is present; but there is no broader overview that helps to unpack the reenactment of the past. Some of the essays are little more than ldquo;this is what we did in costumerdquo; accounts and some fail to make any point beyond the specific. Some of them are participant-observer ethnographic discussions; others are more about how to stage an historical play than anything else. One was even about the Maryland Renaissance Festival; an interesting event but also something so far removed from any real effort to depict the past that even its participantsmdash;be they dressed as Henry VIII or a Hobbit or a character from Star Wars (I have seen all of these at the RenFest)mdash;view it as little more than an opportunity to dress in costume without believing that it has anything to do with history.The varieties of historical reenactment still awaits its analysis. I would like to see a work like Henry Jenkinss Textual Poachers on Civil War reenactments of the renaissance festivals. Perhaps there is such a book; if so please let me know about it. Tony Horwitz comes as close as I know this type of study in Confederates in the Attic but it is still not quite at the level of analysis offered by Jenkins. The place of reenactment in historic sites is a topic screaming for serious attention.