The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory
Focusing on the dynamics between negotiation and homogenisation in discourses about heritage, this paper provides a philosophical analysis of the idea of ‘medium of memory’, complemented with the case of the Festival of the Drunken Dragon in Macao, and attempts to demonstrate how an item of heritage...
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| Published in: | Review of Culture |
|---|---|
| Main Authors: | , |
| Format: | Articles |
| Published: |
Instituto Cultural de Macau
2025
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40078/4371 |
| _version_ | 1877196269308346368 |
|---|---|
| author | Ka Yin Caspar Chan Chun Hay Walter Chan |
| author_autocomplete | Ka Yin Caspar Chan Chun Hay Walter Chan |
| author_browse | Chun Hay Walter Chan Ka Yin Caspar Chan |
| author_facet | Ka Yin Caspar Chan Chun Hay Walter Chan Ka Yin Caspar Chan Chun Hay Walter Chan |
| author_sort | Ka Yin Caspar Chan |
| container_title | Review of Culture |
| container_title_str | Review of Culture |
| container_volume | 78 |
| container_volume_str | 78 |
| description | Focusing on the dynamics between negotiation and homogenisation in discourses about heritage, this paper provides a philosophical analysis of the idea of ‘medium of memory’, complemented with the case of the Festival of the Drunken Dragon in Macao, and attempts to demonstrate how an item of heritage can, in the course of its regular practice, be (re)mediated through different collective and individual memories. The motif of the ‘ouroboros’ is suggested throughout our analysis to compare with the self-perpetuating memory-mediating processes expressed in the emergence of ‘heritage’. Conceptualising heritage as a medium capable of being bestowed with differentiating narratives and memories allows us to come to an alternative perspective of ‘heritage’, that is both malleable and sustainable. Such a perspective also sheds light on certain abuses of ‘heritage’, such as the creation of simulacra. |
| first_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:57:03Z |
| format | Articles |
| genre | Articles |
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| hierarchy_parent_id | zotero-coll-76L3BRGH |
| hierarchy_parent_title | Review of Culture |
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| issn | 1682-1106 |
| last_indexed | 2026-09-11T02:57:03Z |
| latest_content_date | 2026-09-11T02:57:03Z |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publishPlace | Macau |
| publisher | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
| publisherStr | Instituto Cultural de Macau |
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| spelling | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory Focusing on the dynamics between negotiation and homogenisation in discourses about heritage, this paper provides a philosophical analysis of the idea of ‘medium of memory’, complemented with the case of the Festival of the Drunken Dragon in Macao, and attempts to demonstrate how an item of heritage can, in the course of its regular practice, be (re)mediated through different collective and individual memories. The motif of the ‘ouroboros’ is suggested throughout our analysis to compare with the self-perpetuating memory-mediating processes expressed in the emergence of ‘heritage’. Conceptualising heritage as a medium capable of being bestowed with differentiating narratives and memories allows us to come to an alternative perspective of ‘heritage’, that is both malleable and sustainable. Such a perspective also sheds light on certain abuses of ‘heritage’, such as the creation of simulacra. Instituto Cultural de Macau Macau Review of Culture Articles 2025 Festival of the Drunken Dragon Heritage Meaning-making Medium of memory Narrative Remediation of memory Ka Yin Caspar Chan Chun Hay Walter Chan |
| spellingShingle | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory Ka Yin Caspar Chan Chun Hay Walter Chan Festival of the Drunken Dragon Heritage Meaning-making Medium of memory Narrative Remediation of memory |
| title | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory |
| title_autocomplete | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory |
| title_full | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory |
| title_fullStr | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory |
| title_short | The Ouroboros that Traverses Time: Towards a Philosophy of Heritage as Medium of Memory |
| title_sort | the ouroboros that traverses time: towards a philosophy of heritage as medium of memory |
| topic | Festival of the Drunken Dragon Heritage Meaning-making Medium of memory Narrative Remediation of memory |
| topic_autocomplete | Festival of the Drunken Dragon Heritage Meaning-making Medium of memory Narrative Remediation of memory |
| topic_facet | Festival of the Drunken Dragon Heritage Meaning-making Medium of memory Narrative Remediation of memory |
| url | https://www.icm.gov.mo/rc/viewer/pdfViewerParts/40078/4371 |
| zotero_collection_key | 76L3BRGH |