Ruination and the Affective Presence of the Past in relation to the Beit Beirut in Lebanon

Abstract

The following essay is based on fieldnotes I took during my dissertation fieldwork in Beirut, Lebanon. It focuses on Beit Beirut, a building used by snipers during the height of the Lebanese Civil War, but that has now been repurposed as a museum and symbol of remembrance. The essay highlights that this renovated building that purposefully still bears the scars of war on its walls, results in a tension between moving forward whilst making sure future generations remember the past. This is made all the more uncomfortable as for some this is a reminder of a past that is impossible to forget anyway.