The Burden of Memory the Muse of Forgiveness

Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka considers all of Africa--indeed all the world--as he poses the question: once repression stops is reconciliation between oppressor and victim possible? In the face of centuries long devastations wrought on the African continent and her Diaspora by slavery colonialism Apartheid and the manifold faces of racism what form of recompense could possibly be adequate? In a voice as eloquent and humane as it is forceful Soyinka challenges notions of simple forgiveness of confession and absolution as strategies for social healing. Ultimately he turns to art--poetry music painting--as one source that may nourish the seed of reconciliation art as the generous vessel that can hold together the burden of memory and the hope of forgiveness. Based on Soyinka''s Stewart-McMillan lectures delivered at the Du Bois Institute at Harvard The Burden of Memory speaks not only to those concerned specifically with African politics but also to anyone seeking the path to social justice through some of history''s most inhospitable terrain.