Western archivy operates from implicit and explicit assumptions of futurity, which become precarious in light of the temporal and scalar distortions which scholars of memory studies have theorized as a critical existential challenge of the Anthropocene. The Society of American Archivist’s (SAA) Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology predicates a record’s worth on its potential for future use. SAA’s Core Values Statement and Code of Ethicsreiterates that “archivists thus preserve materials for the benefit of the future more than for the concerns of the past.” Similarly, the Association of Canadian Archivist’s (ACA) Code of Ethics and Professional Conductidentifies no higher goal than to “[make] records available and [protect] them for future use.” The interests of future users shape core practices of appraisal, preservation, description, and access.
However, increasingly dire models of climate risk undermine any casual assurance of posterity and stasis. Dipesh Chakrabarty’s 2009 article, “The Climate of History: Four Theses,” represents a significant text for the study of memory in the Anthropocene. Chakrabarty argues that the Anthropocene threatens our assumptions of “a certain continuity of human experiences,”forcing individuals to contend with the threat of global disaster and mortality. For memory workers, the existential uncertainties of the Anthropocene should prompt a crisis of purpose: if there will be no one to remember what was, what will have been the purpose of memory work? What purpose can archives possibly serve under the threat of species annihilation? What will archival obliteration mean for the caretakers of archives?
—Samantha R. Winn, in “Dying Well In the Anthropocene”
Published to write.house by Bix Frankonis. Comments and replies by email are welcome.