Bearing Witness

Perspectives on War and Peace from the Arts and Humanities

Sherrill Grace, Patrick Imbert, Tiffany Johnstone

• Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9780773540590
• eBook ISBN: 9780773587649
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: World History
• Index: Literature

As the centenary of the Great War approaches, citizens worldwide are reflecting on the history, trauma, and losses of a war-torn twentieth century. It is in remembering past wars that we are at once confronted with the profound horror and suffering of armed conflict and the increasing elusiveness of peace. The contributors to Bearing Witness do not presume to resolve these troubling questions, but provoke new kinds of reflection. They explore literature, the arts, history, language, and popular culture to move beyond the language of rhetoric and commemoration provided by politicians and the military. Adding nuance to discussions of war and peace, this collection probes the understanding and insight created in the works of musicians, dramatists, poets, painters, photographers, and novelists, to provide a complex view of the ways in which war is waged, witnessed, and remembered. A compelling and informative collection, Bearing Witness sheds new light on the impact of war and the power of suffering, heroism and memory, to expose the human roots of violence and compassion. Contributors include Heribert Adam (Simon Fraser University), Laura Brandon (Carleton University), Mireille Calle-Gruber (Université La Sorbonne Nouvelle), Janet Danielson (Simon Fraser University), Sandra Djwa (emeritus, Simon Fraser University), Alan Filewod (University of Guelph), Sherrill Grace (University of British Columbia), Patrick Imbert (University of Ottawa), Tiffany Johnstone (PhD Candidate, University of British Columbia), Martin Löschnigg (Graz University), Lauren Lydic (PhD, University of Toronto), Conny Steenman Marcusse (Netherlands), Jonathan Vance (University of Western Ontario), Aritha van Herk (University of Calgary), Peter C. van Wyck (Concordia University), Christl Verduyn (Mount Allison University), and Anne Wheeler (filmmaker).

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half title
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Illustrations
• Acknowledgments
• Preface: Bearing Witness
• For What? An Introduction
• Part I Exploring the Roots of War: Performance, History, Poetry, and Language
• Part II Bearing Witness to War and Peace: The Vocabularies of Literature, Art, and Photography
• Part III Taking Some Lessons from History: Rhetoric, Ethics, and the Search for Peace
• Part IV For What? Artists’ Reflections on Film, Poetry, and Music
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Contributors
• Index