Conflicting Memories is a study of how the Tibetan encounter with
the Chinese state during the Maoist era has been recalled and
reimagined by Chinese and Tibetan authors and artists since the
late 1970s. Written by a team of historians, anthropologists, and
scholars of religion, literature and culture, it examines official
histories, biographies, memoirs, and films as well as oral
testimonies, fiction, and writings by Buddhist adepts. The book
includes translated extracts from key interviews, speeches,
literature, and filmscripts. Conflicting Memories explores what
these revised versions of the past chose as their focus, which
types of people produced them, and what aims they pursued in the
production of new, post-Mao descriptions of Tibet under Chinese
socialism. Contributors include: Robert Barnett, Benno Weiner,
Francoise Robin, Bianca Horlemann, Alice Travers, Alex Raymond,
Chung Tsering, Da s a Pejchar Mortensen, Charlene Makley, Xenia de
Heering, Nicole Willock, M. Maria Turek, Geoffrey Barstow, Gedun
Rabsal, Heather Stoddard, Organ Nyima. "Conflicting Memories is a
truly marvellous book. It has assembled critical readings of
Tibetan memories of their fateful encounters with the Chinese
Communists who came uninvited as their 'liberators' and 'friends'.
Supplemented with excerpts from key Tibetan writings or oral
reminiscences, the volume brings forth hitherto unheard of Tibetan
voices. Yet, these were not hidden voices, but often commissioned
by Chinese authorities or in dialogue with them, each trying to
juggle the promissory pronouncements and an unsavoury reality.
Taken together, the contrapuntal reading of these memories
masterfully showcases Tibetan people's resourcefulness in dealing
with a regime that often redefines its relations with Tibet while
always aiming for total ownership." - URADYN E. BULAG, author of
Collaborative Nationalism: The Politics of Friendship on China's
Mongolian Frontier "Conflicting Memories offers an invaluable
collection aiding us to think through the complex and much
contested ramifications of Tibet's incorporation into Maoist China.
The mix of analytical articles by some of the best scholars now
working in the area and original documents translated from the
writings of astute Tibetan observers is particularly welcome. The
volume will be required reading for all serious students of
contemporary Tibet." - MATTHEW KAPSTEIN, author of The Tibetans
"This remarkable book offers unequalled access to the Tibetan
experience of Communist nation-building. By examining how the
Maoist encounter has been remembered and misremembered across many
media-under the influence of ever-changing political conditions-the
authors communicate both the trauma of those years and the
persisting difficulty of coming to terms with it, for Chinese as
well as Tibetans. The chapters, enhanced by numerous first-hand
accounts and illustrations, represent the best scholarship of this
field. Strongly recommended for readers interested in the history
of the People's Republic and its ethnic minorities." - DONALD S.
SUTTON, co-author of Contesting the Yellow Dragon: Ethnicity,
Religion and the State in the Sino-Tibetan Borderland (with XIAOFEI
KANG) "This groundbreaking work sheds unprecedented light on the
various processes of historical rewriting about Tibet since the
death of Mao. The multivocal composition of the book offers rich
and diverse accounts of a set of key events and epochal moments
that attest to the numerous obstacles in retelling the Maoist past
and the experience of suffering. Countering state narratives and
claims of historical truth, the volume brilliantly gives life to
the deeply affective and existential components of history-making.
What kind of recovery can historical narratives offer? How do
remembrance and forgetfulness help to heal the wounds of past
memories? Trauma caused by the period of high socialism resurfaces
in often indirect, scripted ways in the intimate accounts included
in this collection and, while no Tibetan scholars living in Tibet
or China could openly write on such a sensitive topic, expression
is given to their absent voices. This volume problematizes the
"memory work" at play and the stakes involved, demonstrating that
historical writing is like shifting sands - no sooner has it
settled than another revisionist wave rolls in and knocks you off
balance, precipitating you into an unsteady or even
life-threatening situation. The contributors demonstrate the
resilience of subaltern voices and the nuanced ways in which
historical retellings can restore Tibetan agency in spite of
continuous party-state control over history writing." - STEPHANE
GROS, Centre for Himalayan Studies, CNRS, France
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