THE SOCIAL FRAMEWORK OF MEMORY

The problem of collective memory has become a subject of discussion among representatives of humanities - especially sociologists and historians - over the past few decades. The article presents selected perspectives interpreting the phenomenon of collective memory in contemporary society whose characteristic is that it is inclined towards the future rather than the past. In this context the particular method of establishing ties with the past is defined as a practice serving to define the past in terms of the fluid present and the hard to define future. The collective memory is shown as both a factor shaping socially defined areas of amnesia and a factor which influences the biographical dimension of establishing identity, including a picture of the past.