Unit 10
The Museum: Public Forum or Treasure Vault?

The first public museums in Britain and North America opened with ambitions of educating the working classes and bringing them an appreciation of civilized values, aesthetics, and history. Today, common critiques of the museum describe the institution as an elitist device intended to produce certain areas of meaning and knowledge, while excluding or appropriating others. Museums have responded to such accusations with experiments and programs intended to provide forums for conversation within the public sphere. In the early twenty-first century, policy planning has focused on diversity and access, and much attention has been given to the difficulty of defining national heritage on the basis of the founding nations’ histories.

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit, you should be able to:

1. Explain why museum policies and mandates emphasize service to the public.
2. Evaluate the success of museums and related institutions in meeting such mandates.
3. Trace changes in federal government museum policy and support since the 1980s.
4. Cite some of the major problems facing museums at present and suggest emerging ideas and alternatives for their role(s) in society.