This thesis explores representations of the First World War in English theatre, Theatre in Education (TIE), and Living History between 2014 and 2015. By employing an interdisciplinary approach it evaluates these performance genres in relation to responses sought from Key Stage 3 History pupils. The beginning of the centenary created a cultural outpouring and provided opportunities for secondary schools to include field trips and creative learning about the war. Examination of this commemorative period is contextualised by examining pupils’ interaction with cultural works since 1914, showing that the centenary moment stemmed from a tradition of creatively remembering and teaching the conflict. This perspective highlights long-standing complexities in the relationship between creative practitioners, teachers and education authorities. It also confronts the divide that has grown between some creative practitioners and revisionist historians of the First World War. Revisionist historians’ reassessment of the conduct and necessity of the war has led some to harshly judge cultural works, such as performances, for misleading audiences. Yet little research has been conducted into twenty-first century productions about the war and their reception by school audiences. An investigation of these performances problematizes scholarly notions about how and who has the authority to communicate the First World War to the next generation. Whilst the providers, gatekeepers, and critics of learning through performance are of central consideration, this thesis also values the pupil’s voice. Ten Key Stage 3 cohorts are used as case studies, providing a snapshot of the creative activities and field trips employed by schools in 2014 and 2015. Interviews and questionnaires provide pupils’ feedback on what they thought and how they felt about studying history through performance. Observations of History lessons and performances also remove the debate from the hypothetical to the realities of history teaching. They reveal that pupils’ cultural backgrounds, schooling, and exposure to cultural works shaped their responses to performances about the First World War. Pupils also assigned the performances varying degrees of historical authority, some viewed them as merely entertainment, others as educational sources and several as a mixture of the two. Performances brought immediacy and life to the historical topic and provoked an empathetic response from many pupils. Yet some struggled with the symbolism of theatre and others feared the participation that came with TIE and Living History. Consequently, this thesis explores pupil’s critical, personal and emotional engagement with performances, raising questions about what criteria should be used to evaluate the success of such non-formal learning on the war.

Abstrakt Målet med denna kunskapsöversikt är att kartlägga tidigare forskning i synen på sovjetkommunism och Sovjetunionens roll under kalla kriget och hur det skildras i historieundervisningen. Översikten kommer även att kartlägga forskning i hur och varför detta ämne skiljer sig i länder som i dagsläget är icke-kommunistiska baserat på skillnader i historiekulturer från 1933 till nutid. Majoriteten av de källor som använts i denna kunskapsöversikt har tagit utgångspunkt i tre perspektiv: historieläroböcker, lärare och historieundervisning, samt historiekulturer. Databaserna som användes för att hitta källor var följande: Swepub, EBSCO, Libguide och DIVA. Databaserna användes i syfte att hitta både engelska och svenska källor eftersom källorna inom detta område var mycket begränsade och källor skrivna på engelska skulle öppna upp för ett mer internationellt perspektiv. Slutsatsen som kan dras av denna kunskapsöversikt är att synen på sovjetkommunism och den roll som Sovjetunionen spelade under kalla kriget skiljer sig mellan länder som i dagsläget inte är under kommunistiskt styre. Både synen på kommunism och Sovjetunionens roll i kalla kriget kommer med en viss tvetydighet vilket skildras i kunskapsöversikten. Vidare påverkas historieläroböckerna av politik och tenderar att vara mindre analytiska än historielärarna. Historielärarnas syn på kommunism och kalla kriget påverkas av historiekultur som kan visa ett lands historiska koppling till kommunism och sovjetkommunism.

Ever since the beginning, museums around the world have tried using different techniques to attract visitors. Some open-air museums have even started to create small worlds of their own, wherein they perform living history. The idea is that visitors will be able to step into history, and see different time periods with their own eyes. A prime example of an open-air museum that uses this kind of concept, is Skansen in Stockholm. There, visitors can walk around on cobblestone streets and go into old houses, where they are greeted by staff in historical clothing. This thesis examines how Skansen uses performance and historical clothing to teach history, in the quest to create an immersive experience for the visitors. The empirical material consists of observations and interviews with staff at Skansen, as well as visitors. Drawing upon Richard Schechners definition of performance theory, different parts of Skansen are dissected to determine how museums can use this kind of method in order to appeal to visitors.    Furthermore, the historical clothing is used as a reference point to gather and analyze the thoughts and experiences of the staff and visitors at Skansen. It became apparent that clothes can help you feel like a part of history, both in the sense that it makes you look different and move your body differently. This highlights how clothing can affect people’s bodies and minds. In that way, we see the relationship between humans and objects, and how they interact in different settings. The interviews also showed that people can have different approaches to the performance aspect. While some appreciate the playful nature of stepping into a role, others can feel uneasy about playing pretend. Nonetheless, many of the staff members stressed that they use the historical clothing to create a new persona, which separates their work life from their free time. This shows that clothing and performance can be used as tools in working environments, in order to protect one’s integrity.

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L'histoire vivante est une manière de présenter le passé, qui peut se décliner en fonction d'époques variées ; celle qui est prise en compte dans cette recherche concerne la période médiévale. La pratique s'expose à travers deux activités distinctes mais complémentaires : la reconstitution historique et les Arts martiaux historiques européens, couramment nommés AMHE. L'étude menée répond à un travail de terrain interdisciplinaire, mêlant des approches ethnologiques et sociologiques. Les données recueillies proviennent d'observations participantes, mises en place lors de différents événements, d'entretiens (semi-directifs ou directifs) auprès de divers informateurs et, enfin, de deux séries de questionnaires. C'est une méthodologie aussi bien qualitative que quantitative qui a été utilisée, afin de permettre une compréhension globale de l'objet d'étude.La problématique retenue, en fonction d'une dialectique constante entre le terrain et la théorie, questionne les modalités d'expressions d'une pratique culturelle génératrice d'identités. Plusieurs axes ont ainsi pu être dégagés. C'est d'abord sous l'angle de la diffusion des connaissances (actions culturelles, rapport au patrimoine, liens entretenus avec la mémoire et principe de transmission) que l'histoire vivante est abordée. Ensuite, la recherche porte sur les éléments de définition associés à la démarche, entre activité de loisir et professionnalisation. Les thématiques présentées renvoient autant au fait associatif qu'au développement technique, en passant par les enjeux touristiques et les ambivalences relatives au concept de fête. Enfin, le dernier point évoque la pratique sociale, créatrice de liens entre les participants. Du profil sociologique des enquêtés au principe de communauté, les investigations réalisées invitent à appréhender les normes et valeurs spécifiques à ce type d'activités. L'un des principaux enjeux consiste à afficher les mécanismes relatifs à la délimitation identitaire d'un groupe particulier : c'est en fonction du rapport à l'altérité et des normes véhiculées par un ensemble précis que le lien social se maintient ou se délie. La faible reconnaissance dont dispose l'histoire vivante favorise ainsi une approche en termes de jeu identitaire, fécond pour l'analyse globale d'une démarche contemporaine en expansion. / Living history is a way to investigate the past which differs according to the time period under consideration. The one which is considered in this work is the Middle-Ages. Two distinct but complementary activities are introduced : historical reenactment and HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts). The study uses a cross-disciplinary method, with ethnological and sociological elements. The fieldwork presents participant observation, interviews and questionnaires in a qualitative and quantitative approach.My working hypothesis consists in questioning cultural activity as a means to build up identity. Three points can be developed : the first one displays dissemination of knowledges (cultural modalities, heritage, memory and transmission) related to living history. Then, the research focuses on the link between spare time and occupation. Life organization, expansion of professionalism, tourism and the concept of fair are investigated. The last point refers to the social dimension that creates links among participants. This way, the work presents the sociological profile of the actors, the notion of community, that of the representation of activities which leads to specifics norms and rules. The goal is to understand identity demarcations of a particular group. The connection between alterity, norms and rules allows or releases the social link. The limited recognition of living history conduces to approaches concerning games of identity, fruitful for the analysis of a contemporary practice, which is actually growing in France.

After World War II some people from all over Europe started to say that the destruction of the European Jews never happened. This article is written to compare the argument the Holocaust deniers are using against science document. The materials that have been used for this comparison are the books “Dog verkligen 6 miljoner? Sanning till sist” and ”En tom säck kan inte stå” which are the Holocaust deniers material. From the other side I have been using the Swedish states internet side Forum för levande historia, the site of Världens historia and the documentary of Auschwitz from BBC. The arguments will be studied from post fact theory specters, were I will compare the facts from the two sides and put them together. I will do that by look how the arguments from the two sides are built. I have also made questions that I have been asking by email the two sides. The Holocaust denier’s sides are the Swedish party called Nordiska Motståndsrörelsen (Nordic resistance movement) and the other side is Forum för levande historia (Forum of living history). The result that this study will show are when you put all the arguments from the Holocaust deniers together, their argument will not be as strong as when they are by them self.

The aim of this musical anthropology thesis focuses on "medieval music" as practiced by fans of historical fencing in the form of living history on the example of two Czech bands - Subulcus and Medieval Open Band as part of project Prácheňská manství. In my thesis I focus not only on sound and musical instruments, but also on the behavior of actors and their conceptualization of the Middle Ages, according to the concepts of music as culture of Allan Merriam, resp. of music as social life of Thomas Turino. I combine here the basic ideas of ethnomusicology with the ideas of musical memory in connection with the contemporary concepts of social memory and, last but not least, with the concepts of "golden age", nostalgia, staged authenticity and invented traditions. The point of this work is to bring about the origin and form of music that the actors understand as medieval, although not always comes the repertoire from the Middle Ages.

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