Shuai Dang

This thesis explores the changing role of oral history in writing history in China and the United States and its impact on historical memory. It mainly focuses on its use in the recording and producing of the collective memory of the September 11 attacks in the United States, of the Chinese Zhiqing group (educated youth sent to work in farms during the cultural revolution), and of traumatic memories more generally. The classic works of Herodotus and Sima Qian show that oral history has carried multiple perspectives since ancient times, transcending class and contributing to the enrichment and development of human knowledge. However, oral history was considered unreliable during the scientific phase of modern historiography. However, the social transformation of the 20th century prompted scholars to rediscover this oral tradition, especially in the United States after World War II. At that time, Allan Nevins promoted the creation of the modern discipline of oral history, which gradually became systematic and academicized by preserving personal memories and emotions through recordings.

Meanwhile, the development of oral history in China also demonstrated a unique understanding of memory, especially regarding recent events, providing life details and emotional expressions challenging to capture in written materials. Overall, the theoretical shift in oral history in China and the United States reflects an interest in the diversity of memory and the complexity of human experience, revealing that history is a record of events and a dynamic continuation of collective memory. The shift I study provides a critical perspective on how contemporary society uses oral history to achieve memory extension and bridge historical gaps in the non-oral archive.

Shuai-Dang-Final-Thesis

My name is Dang Shuai, and I come from Qinhuangdao, Hebei Province, China. 

Before joining the Oral History program at Columbia University, I interned at the Cui Yongyuan Oral History Center at the Communication University of China.

Since 2019, I have been involved in oral history interviews with Chinese Radio Broadcasters & the Development of Radio Broadcasting. During this process, I have gained a deep understanding of the importance of the interviewer’s listening in oral history and how the interviewer’s words, emotions, psychology, and actions affect the interviewee’s oral narrative. I want to pursue further research in this area.

In 2020, I participated in an oral history interview with the “Encyclopedia Scholars” organized by the Encyclopedia of China Publishing House. In the process, I felt the love and passion of these scholars for their profession. This has inspired me to take up oral history work so that more people, especially ordinary people, can tell and share their stories.

Next, I will use oral history to study how cultural heritage and mass media influence people’s collective memory.