After decolonization. Contemporary theorists about (non-) remembering French colonialism

Abstract

The article presents the selected interpretations of contemporary societies’ attitudes towards their colonial past. The problem of rethinking the period of colonization concerns both the societies that previously colonized (in the text: the example of France) and those that were colonized (the example of Algeria). On the basis of the considerations of such researches as Ouamara Achour, Banjamin Stora and Pascal Bruckner, the article shows possible ways of commemorating the past and its influence on the present. These interpretations are treated as a specific contribution of French and francophone humanities to the postcolonial theory.