Avlägsna, bevara eller avväga? : En argumentationsanalys av debatten kring Anders och Gustaf Retzius

Sammanfattning: Studying what eugenics was and other subjects that could be tied to this is nothing new. However, there are still gaps in the research field that need to be filled. One of these concerns critical debates, for example using person-based names on lecture-halls and buildings. The purpose of this study was to investigate what themes and lines of conflict could be identified in the debate around the historical heritage after Anders and Gustaf Retzius, two previous researchers. The study analyzed the overall society’s debate within the Swedish daily press. The study used argument analysis as its method and included a total of 15 articles. The theoretical framework of this study included descriptions of how memory can be used in various ways such as organizing one’s history and what part it could play in for example debates concerning changes like removing memorials. The results of the present study for example showed that one theme and line of conflict in the debate concerned how involved Anders and Gustaf Retzius were in the Swedish eugenics, since this according to various parts of the chosen works could be viewed in different ways. The study concludes that the debate is multi-layered and could be viewed from many different perspectives.