ABSTRACT
Sociologist Maurice Halbwachs is considered the founder of collective memory studies. He argues that groups have collective memories, which are manifested through social frameworks such as families, religious organizations, and schools. Halbwachs's work has catalyzed an avalanche of research, but he does not give much attention to the physical and mental realities of memory or to the relationship between individual and collective memory. This chapter demonstrates some analytic tools that break down the binary division in collective memory research. They exemplify a psycholinguistic approach that permits the "analysis of specificity and particularity of discourses and practices" while also ensuring that these specifics and particulars are not divorced from the collective structures and institutions from which they are drawn. They are built on the work of Hungarian-French philosopher and psychoanalyst Nicolas Abraham, and of Abraham in conjunction with his colleague Maria Torok, who theorizes about how the linguistic surround informs awareness in individuals.
