We are, as Roger C. Aden suggests in the introduction to Rhetorics Haunting the National Mall, forever haunted by the past. We cannot escape the past, even when parts of it are dispersed, displaced, and downplayed. There may be no more compelling example of this truth than the commemorative landscape of the National Mall, which is the apogee of official appeals to national memory. For even as its monuments of marble and stone aggressively tell one story of our nation, other stories can be heard in the spaces betwixt and between these national landmarks. In a truly innovative collection of essays, Rhetorics Haunting the National Mall thoughtfully explores these alternative stories, illuminating the complex and contested nature of public memory in the process. A truly fascinating and unexpected examination of the most famous landscape of memory in the US. -- Brian L. Ott, Texas Tech University The authors in this provocative volume work to disrupt the memorial space of the National Mall by invoking the various voices who have used this space as a site of dissent and contestation and by attending to the memorial spaces often downplayed for bypassed. In so doing, these authors remind us that invoking the past is never simple and that understanding the power of public memory requires careful attention to its rhetoric. -- Kendall R. Phillips, Syracuse University The impressive monuments in the heart of Washington, DC are familiar to most Americans. Rhetorics Haunting the National Mall is a highly original collection that actually reveals many events connected to this notable place that were displaced from public view. As such it reveals fractures in our national memory not apparent in the overall grandeur of the site. -- John Bodnar, Indiana University
