Washington DC

The Symbol of American Memorials

       When thinking of memorials, cenotaphs, and catafalques, my mind often goes to one place. A place in our country that is full of many different kinds of connections to our nations long and brutal past. The place I'm talking about of course, is our nations capital, Washington D.C. This week in class, we learned about different types of memorials, and how they all have their own sort of representation. When I learned I was going to have to complete an assignment based on a memorial, I immediately began thinking of my time in Washington D.C. When visiting the capitol for our 8th grade trip, we went to numerous memorials which at the time held little to no meaning to me, besides the fact that they honored important dead people. Throughout this week, I realized how the different memorials all had unique ways of representing the past. Some of these memorials include the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, MLK Jr. Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Veterans memorial, Washington Monument, and the World War II memorial. As shown in this list, some memorials are dedicated to important figures in American history, and others represent important events. All of these massive monuments being located in Washington DC signifies something bigger to me. it signifies that the city of Washington DC is a symbol of our past, our hardship, and the cruel events that took place in order for us to get where we are as a nation. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial serves as a perfect example. As the memorial cuts into the ground, designer Maya Lin claims it is representative of what war does to our country. "It wounds". This is a perfect example of the hurt, and past of our country, that is all represented in Washington DC.



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