Doctoral Dissertation: Making Collective History in South Louisiana

这个项目调查了路易斯安那州南部精英白人阿卡迪亚人的集体社会认同的构建。最近，这些人努力塑造历史遗产和解释阿卡迪亚历史的努力激增。然而，这一进程必须就法语居民对其历史的不同看法以及非洲裔美国人参与历史的差异这一未被承认的矛盾进行谈判。研究人员将分析一个城镇的社会身份和历史遗迹，试图回答有关种族、阶级和性别以及文化遗产之间的关系的问题。将测试几个假设，这些假设集中在官方历史如何构成和加强种族差异的概念，以及挑战官方历史的白话历史的共存。研究方法包括档案研究、结构化访谈、社会调查和参与者观察。这个项目将有助于我们理解创造历史的政治，并为公众在历史保护和遗产旅游方面的倡议提供信息。

Abstract 0079230This project investigates the construction of a collective social identity among elite, white Acadians of south Louisiana. There has been a recent surge in efforts of this population to shape a historic heritage and to interpret Acadian history. Yet that process must negotiate unacknowledged contradictions concerning differences in Francophone residents' notions of their history, as well as in African-American participation in that history. The researcher will analyze the social identities and historic sites of one town, seeking to answer questions concerning the relationship between race, class and gender and cultural heritage. Several hypotheses will be tested that focus on the how official histories constitute and reinforce notions of racial difference, and on the co-existence of vernacular histories that challenge official histories. Methods include archival research, structured interviewing, social surveys, and participant observation. This project will contribute to our understanding of the politics of history making, and inform public initiatives in historic preservation and heritage tourism.