Ross Wilson
My research background is varied, taking approaches from archaeology, anthropology, literature and sociology to examine aspects of modern history and its representation in the present. I have research interests in modern British history and the history of the United States and I have written widely on issues of conflict, consumerism, identity, enslavement, literature, museums, heritage, urbanism, landscapes and material culture.
In 2012, Routledge published my first book, Landscapes of the Western Front: Materiality during the Great War, which provided an anthropologically-informed examination of the British soldiers on the battlefields of France and Flanders during the First World War.
This work then developed into an assessment of how the Great War (1914-1918) is valued and used across contemporary British society. This analysis of cultural history and heritage assesses how individuals and communities use the memory of the conflict to understand current political and social contexts. This work, Cultural Heritage of the Great War in Britain, was published by Ashgate in July 2013.
I continued my examination of the experience of the First World War with the 2014 publication with Ashgate, New York and the First World War: shaping an American city. This work examined how the conflict of 1914-1918 had a dramatic effect on the citizens of New York, ensuring that a city of immigrants, which was perceived as a potential threat within the wider United States, was reformed during the war as a metropolis which was dedicated to the principles of the nation.
In conjunction with this research, I have also been involved with the 1807 Commemorated project at the University of York which provided one of the major assessments of the marking of the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade in British museums in 2007. This work was published by Routledge in 2011 as Representing Enslavement and Abolition in Museums: Ambiguous Engagements.
My current research examines the history and heritage of health and safety in Britain and the United States, the representation of the First World War in British culture, the history of New York, digital heritage, memory studies and the role of museums and heritage sites as a mode of social and political reform.
Address: Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom
In 2012, Routledge published my first book, Landscapes of the Western Front: Materiality during the Great War, which provided an anthropologically-informed examination of the British soldiers on the battlefields of France and Flanders during the First World War.
This work then developed into an assessment of how the Great War (1914-1918) is valued and used across contemporary British society. This analysis of cultural history and heritage assesses how individuals and communities use the memory of the conflict to understand current political and social contexts. This work, Cultural Heritage of the Great War in Britain, was published by Ashgate in July 2013.
I continued my examination of the experience of the First World War with the 2014 publication with Ashgate, New York and the First World War: shaping an American city. This work examined how the conflict of 1914-1918 had a dramatic effect on the citizens of New York, ensuring that a city of immigrants, which was perceived as a potential threat within the wider United States, was reformed during the war as a metropolis which was dedicated to the principles of the nation.
In conjunction with this research, I have also been involved with the 1807 Commemorated project at the University of York which provided one of the major assessments of the marking of the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade in British museums in 2007. This work was published by Routledge in 2011 as Representing Enslavement and Abolition in Museums: Ambiguous Engagements.
My current research examines the history and heritage of health and safety in Britain and the United States, the representation of the First World War in British culture, the history of New York, digital heritage, memory studies and the role of museums and heritage sites as a mode of social and political reform.
Address: Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom
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Books by Ross Wilson
Drawing on an interdisciplinary analysis of a variety of museum exhibitions around the globe, the book demonstrates how the narrative of ‘witnessing’ has shaped representation of war, genocide, repression and violence. Revealing that this form of presentation is inherently Western in its origins and nature, Wilson goes on to argue that witnessing the past is to colonise the future, as we project a certain view of the events of the past onto the present. Detailing the character, content and meanings of representation that focus on the traumatic events of the twentieth century, the book demonstrates the way in which visitors are cast as ‘witnesses’ and questions what the true purpose of witnessing really is.
Museums and the Act of Witnessing draws attention to the fact that we have inherited a distinct, and often limited, mode of seeing the past and considers how we can more effectively engage with the past in the present. The book will be of interest to academics and students engaged in the study of museums, history, sociology, conflict, politics and memory.
Drawing on contributions from around the world, this edited collection provides a range of innovative approaches to using gender as a mode of enquiry. From the politics of museum displays, the exploration of pedagogy, the role of local initiatives and the legal frameworks that structure representation, the volume’s diversity and objectives represent a challenge for students, academics and professionals to rethink gender. Rather than featuring gender as an addition to wider discussions of heritage, this volume makes gender the focus of concern as a means of building a new agenda within the field.
This volume, which addresses how we engage with gender and heritage in both practice and theory, is essential reading for scholars at all levels and should also serve as a useful guide for practitioners.
This book examines this process and focuses on the ideas, values and agendas that have defined the representation and reception of the history of the natural world, including geology and palaeontology, within contemporary society and addresses how the heritage of natural history, whether through museums, parks, tourist sites or popular culture is used to shape social, political, cultural and moral identities. It will be of interest to scholars and practitioners within heritage studies, public history, ecology, environmental studies and geography.
Detailing the specific words and phrases associated with particular periods used to describe contemporary society, this thorough examination of language and history will be of great interest to those studying historiography, social history and linguistics.
Publication June 2011
Papers by Ross Wilson
Drawing on an interdisciplinary analysis of a variety of museum exhibitions around the globe, the book demonstrates how the narrative of ‘witnessing’ has shaped representation of war, genocide, repression and violence. Revealing that this form of presentation is inherently Western in its origins and nature, Wilson goes on to argue that witnessing the past is to colonise the future, as we project a certain view of the events of the past onto the present. Detailing the character, content and meanings of representation that focus on the traumatic events of the twentieth century, the book demonstrates the way in which visitors are cast as ‘witnesses’ and questions what the true purpose of witnessing really is.
Museums and the Act of Witnessing draws attention to the fact that we have inherited a distinct, and often limited, mode of seeing the past and considers how we can more effectively engage with the past in the present. The book will be of interest to academics and students engaged in the study of museums, history, sociology, conflict, politics and memory.
Drawing on contributions from around the world, this edited collection provides a range of innovative approaches to using gender as a mode of enquiry. From the politics of museum displays, the exploration of pedagogy, the role of local initiatives and the legal frameworks that structure representation, the volume’s diversity and objectives represent a challenge for students, academics and professionals to rethink gender. Rather than featuring gender as an addition to wider discussions of heritage, this volume makes gender the focus of concern as a means of building a new agenda within the field.
This volume, which addresses how we engage with gender and heritage in both practice and theory, is essential reading for scholars at all levels and should also serve as a useful guide for practitioners.
This book examines this process and focuses on the ideas, values and agendas that have defined the representation and reception of the history of the natural world, including geology and palaeontology, within contemporary society and addresses how the heritage of natural history, whether through museums, parks, tourist sites or popular culture is used to shape social, political, cultural and moral identities. It will be of interest to scholars and practitioners within heritage studies, public history, ecology, environmental studies and geography.
Detailing the specific words and phrases associated with particular periods used to describe contemporary society, this thorough examination of language and history will be of great interest to those studying historiography, social history and linguistics.
Publication June 2011