Description
Screens of Memory
Book Summary
Can a video game convey reliable knowledge about the Second World War? To what extent do historical memes influence contemporary politics? In this work, historian Alberto Venegas analyzes how digital technologies transform our relationship with the past. With an agile style and a solid documentary foundation, the author reveals the risks of reducing history to a visual spectacle and offers the keys to critically interpreting the historical representations that we consume daily on screens. An essential essay for understanding how new media shape our collective memory.
What is it about?
Starting from such current questions as the influence of memes in the 2016 elections or the credibility of historical video games, Screens of Memory explores the impact of digital visual culture on our understanding of the past. Alberto Venegas examines how tools like video games, social media, and memes can both enrich and distort historical knowledge. The book warns of the danger of turning history into a mere repertoire of simplified images at the service of political or commercial ends, and proposes a critical framework for navigating this new information ecosystem without losing sight of the complexity of historical events.
Main Topics
- Representation of history in video games and its reliability as a source of knowledge.
- Political use of memes and viral content to distort historical memory.
- Impact of digital technologies on historical dissemination and learning.
- Risks of simplification and manipulation of the past in contemporary visual culture.
- Strategies for critical consumption of historical representations in digital media.
Who is it recommended for?
This book is aimed at readers interested in history, digital culture, and contemporary communication. It is especially relevant for students and professionals in the humanities, social sciences, communication, and education who want to understand how new media transform our perception of the past. It will also be of great use to anyone who consumes historical content on the internet and wishes to develop a critical eye toward video games, documentaries, memes, or viral posts.
What this book offers
- A rigorous and up-to-date analysis of the relationship between history and digital culture.
- Practical keys to critically interpreting historical representations on screens.
- A pioneering perspective on the role of video games as vehicles for historical memory.
- Concrete examples that connect digital phenomena with real historical processes.
- A necessary reflection on the risks of simplifying the past in the information age.
Technical Specifications
- Author: VENEGAS, ALBERTO
- Publisher: CLAVE INTELECTUAL
- Language: Spanish
- Subject: LITERARY ESSAYS, HISTORY, SOCIOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY, HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING, DIGITAL LIFESTYLES
- Collection: CLAVE INTELECTUAL
- Publication date: March 2023
- Number of pages: 264
- Weight: 528 g
Editorial Review
Screens of Memory is a timely and necessary essay that addresses with rigor an increasingly relevant question: how new technologies condition our way of understanding history. Alberto Venegas combines a solid academic foundation with an accessible style, making the book useful for both specialists and general readers. His critical approach, far from simplistic alarmism, offers valuable tools for navigating the complex landscape of digital memory. A recommended reading for those who want to go beyond the surface of the historical content they consume daily.