AustLit

'This special issue assesses the centenary or centennial as a commemorative event in world politics. Viewed in terms of their significance for marking a particular event, centenaries seem a rather benign topic of study. Yet, considered more broadly, they provide occasions for re-examining the ethics, politics, outcomes, and contested memories of particularly contentious historical moments. Such events have the potential, when commemorated, to capture not only scholarly attention, but contemporary political debates as well. Yet, because they are tethered to two signifiers that are both inclusive and exclusive — time (the event) and space (of the event, or the community commemorating the event), these reflections, celebrations, or commemorations, seemingly reduced to the past, provide stark evidence for the intersection of history and politics. What is considered “an event” to be commemorated, or not, is conditioned by forms of power and discipline.' (Editorial introduction)