Le musée dhistoire en France entre traditions nationales et soucis identitaires

Abstract

The museums of history have known some spectacular changes in contemporary France for two decades. New buildings have been constructed, and a lot of old ones have been renovated. The study of some specific cases, for example the museums devoted to the history of World War II, or to the history of migrations, demonstrates how museology is nowadays far from the pure illustration of erudite knowledge. The ideal museum of french history is today a museum very concerned by the present state of affairs, the political agenda or the social agency. Its aims are linked to the consciousness of « heritage » in the contemporary society. One difficulty is not to becoming a commercial product, a kind of entertainment, or of « edutainment » for kids. The challenge is to play the role of a place of memory, or even to figure a tool for collective thinking about the new stakes of national identity.