Geoffrey W. Sutton PhD, Psychology and Culture

Soldiers, Heroes, Faith and Identity Normandy, France 8 March 2012 / Geoff Sutton 1. War Memorials offer the living evidence that another human being lived and died . And in that war, that person made a significant contribution to us -- the one living and able to observe the memorial. Even when not connected by a family tree, we feel connected to someone who helped preserve our nation. 2. Memorials reveal identities . But the identities are often limited to a name and a date. Somehow a name is such a vital part of who we are. Some people get pretty upset when their names are mispronounced. What’s in a name? A lot really-- an entire life can be called up by a name. And we care for those unnamed—a place reserved in time and space for the “Unknown.” Sometimes we get a glimpse into another piece of identity. My father-in-law was a World War II American Veteran. There's a symbol representing his military service, wheat identifying his farmer-life, and a fish in mem...