NOVEMBER — “Remember, remember the fifth of November” – A time now to be forgot? The psychology and politics of remembering and forgetting, celebrating and commemorating

Abstract

The lighting of fires and fireworks on 5th November is a tradition that has continued to varying degrees within Great Britain and the former British Colonies since the Observation of the 5th November Act 1605 became law, only months after the plot to kill James I was foiled on the evening of 5th November 1605. Since then, like many traditions, the original reasons and methods for remembering and celebrating have been deliberately usurped for differing religious and political intent, as well as having become diluted simply through the passage of time and location. More recently, some places still celebrating Bonfire Night have tried to ban fireworks, and/or change the celebration to fit other cultural events. This article explores the reason for the original Act, and the way in which this intent has been usurped to serve different ends; it also considers the more general implications of maintaining such traditions within a multicultural society, as they can influence the reality and development of shared or separatist multicultural identities. The parallel between maintaining traditions to reinforce collective identities is considered, as well as the role and risks of integrating multicultural traditions to develop a stable personal identity within psychotherapy. It then concludes with the assertion that continuing to celebrate the 5th November has a role to play in maintaining a shared identity, irrespective of what is actually being remembered.