The Republic of Amnesia
Book •
Louisa Lim’s 'The Republic of Amnesia' investigates how the Chinese state and society remember—or choose to forget—traumatic events, with a focus on the Tiananmen Square massacre and its erasure from public consciousness.
Drawing on interviews, archival research, and cultural analysis, Lim shows how censorship, education, and civic rituals shape collective memory.
She argues that the deliberate forgetting is itself a form of political power, enabling the state to control narratives and legitimacy.
The book illustrates how memory politics affect citizens' identities and the possibilities for dissent.
Lim’s work sheds light on the long-term consequences of state-driven historical amnesia in authoritarian contexts.
Drawing on interviews, archival research, and cultural analysis, Lim shows how censorship, education, and civic rituals shape collective memory.
She argues that the deliberate forgetting is itself a form of political power, enabling the state to control narratives and legitimacy.
The book illustrates how memory politics affect citizens' identities and the possibilities for dissent.
Lim’s work sheds light on the long-term consequences of state-driven historical amnesia in authoritarian contexts.
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