Narrating Personal Moments Through Social Images: Postcards as Souvenirs of Memorable Instances and Places

Postcards are purchased both as souvenirs – objects that authenticate past
experiences and speak through nostalgia – and as collection items – objects
that add to the narration of our personal past. They are sent to relatives and
friends as charismatic views of the sociality and culture of the visited other.
The postcard is purchased as a mass-produced view of a given society,
produced within the given societal borders. The handwriting of the personal
beneath the caption of the social transforms the public into private, the social
image into an individual memento.
This paper examines the role of postcard images as vehicles narrating past
instances. Pinned on one’s notice board, the social image is transformed into a
personal narration – one connected to one’s past and therefore worthy to be
remembered and talked about.