Primary Sources Pt. 2
The problem with memories is that they are never objective. A specific memory is different two weeks after it happens, and even more different two years after it happens. If ten people were present, you'd get ten different stories. Or, you tell the story so many times that you tend to agree on one truth, even though it might not be correct. Fiction and memoir could be in the same format, but they aren't. Memoirs have less dialogue and more narration--memories can be described, not scribed. The other difference is retrospective commentary. Much of the tension in fiction comes from the main character not understanding what's going on. The tension in memoir comes from the pain of hindsight--you either understand it all too well, or continue to wish you could figure it out.
One way to make a memory objective is to have an objective recording that you can objectively revisit. That's pretty much impossible, which is why it only appears in the form of magic. Harry Potter can view objective memories in a Pensieve. He is (literally) dropped into a scene and it feels like he is really there. He can move around, listen to other conversations, and anything else he can normally do except he is invisible to all. They can't hear him or smell him or anything; it's as if he's not there. His later account of this memory will certainly be subjective, but the memory itself is from no one's perspective. Without his own involvement in the events, he is totally absorbed in what is happening. He isn't thinking about his own behavior because with no one else to witness it, it doesn't matter. The memory itself, not his reaction, takes center stage.
Sometimes I feel this way in real (and Muggle) life. If I'm meeting new people or getting really into a class discussion, I forget that I'm there and expected to participate. It's like I'm watching a play and I don't want to interrupt the actors. It might make me seem uninterested or shy, but it's really a compliment. I value this event so much that I feel that my involvement will taint it. Maybe that makes me submissive and self-degrading, but I like to think it just makes me an excellent listener. I don't need to contribute with words, my role is the scribe. I am the source for anyone who wants to go back and remind themselves of what really happened. I'm the reporter, not carrying a press pass but a neutrality pass. My silence and social invisibility is my duty and service to all in attendance.
Not that I can portray an event objectively, I'm human with my own ideas and feelings. My accidental practice of becoming the fly on the wall is for my own benefit. It will be subjective, but I can tolerate my own brand of subjectivity. I believe that a memory will be more pure and objective, at least for me, if I take a step back and learn from others.