FACTS AND VALUES IN BIOGRAPHICAL MEMORY

Abstract

History lives in the memory of the people. Therefore, along with the history of events, it is necessary to investigate the psychohistory. The main events of history are the flourishes and declines of ethnic groups, the victory and defeat of states, the achievements of culture and the crises of civilizations. Hence the consciousness of the winners and the vanquished, the optimistic belief in progress or, conversely, the pessimistic feeling of the "end of history". Every society in its development, one way or another, experiences such states. The consciousness of the winners is characterized by heroism. On the contrary, the state of defeat is dominated by feelings of guilt, and shame. Worst of all, when they go into the stage of resentiment and expectation of revenge. To understand how people and peoples find a way out in situations of defeat and crisis, it is necessary to study psychohistory. Most often historians present it as the history of heroes, and lawyers as the history of crimes. In disputes about history, the phenomenon of historical memory, the formation of which is determined not only by facts, but also by values. This raises the question of the assessment of the past, which depends on whether contemporaries feel ashamed or proud for their past.