Memorial Objects and the Cultural Repertoires of Loss

There are the photographs that people put on display, pieces of clothing that some may keep and do not wear, or a car that a person may keep investing in even though it may be time to get a new one. These are just a few examples of objects that participants in a study on experiences of loss described as important in their lives because they were related to someone they lost. The materiality of loss demonstrates the meaning that people give to objects that might seem common in everyday life but it also represents the “hidden” emotions related to the process of memorializing. How do people come to give such artifacts meaning in their lives? Drawing on qualitative interviews with 32 participants in Ontario, Canada, my presentation investigates memorial objects as an important cultural repertoire. This paper explores the complexity of emotions and memorial objects that facilitate a type of interaction with a world that opens space for otherwise “hidden” emotions.