Paul Reilly Insights

I have enjoyed learning about the different memorials and how much actually goes into creating one. The structure of viewing many different types of memorials in conjunction with researching a narrow topic enhanced many of the readings. My topic, Roadside Shrines, helped me focus primarily on the ritual and creative aspects of many of the shrines we viewed in class. 

The trips to Stone Wall Jackson's grave site and VMI was beneficial in that it showed on a small scale the importance of location, the artistic message sent, and importance of knowing who the memorial is targeted to. 

The reading I did to write my paper highlighted the axis of entry of monuments. The MLK, Lincoln, etc all used visuals to set the tone of the memorials. Similarly, roadside shrines use these visual cues that monuments  we saw in DC used.

I am looking forward to moving away from U.S. based memorials and looking at other culturally important memorials. The readings of Buddhist stupa reminded me of my researching into roadside shrines. No matter who or what culture we talk about memorials are created to memorialize and connected with past events. This theme permeated most of the readings and makes the class more interesting.

Paul Reilly