Bookshelf | Cultura Histórica

Historiography and Theory of History

		Kagan, Richard L. (2009). Clio and the Crown: The Politics of History in Medieval and Early Modern Spain. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 376 pp.
		In Clio and the Crown, Richard L. Kagan examines the official histories of Spanish monarchs from medieval times to the middle of the 18th century. He expertly guides readers through the different kinds of official histories commissioned: those whose primary focus was the monarch; those that centered on the Spanish kingdom as a whole; and those that celebrated Spain's conquest of the New World. In doing so, Kagan also documents the life and work of individual court chroniclers, examines changes in the practice of official history, and highlights the political machinations that influenced the redaction of such histories. "A masterful, comprehensive survey of the history of 'official' historiography in medieval and early modern Spain, from Isidore to Charles III." -- Jorge Cañizares-Esguerra, the University of Texas at Austin

		F. Ankersmit, E. Domanska & H. Kellner (2009). Re-Figuring Hayden White. Palo Alto: Stanford University Press, 400 pp.
		Produced in honor of White's eightieth birthday, Re-Figuring Hayden White testifies to the lasting importance of White's innovative work, which firmly reintegrates historical studies with literature and the humanities. The book is a major reconsideration of the historian's contributions and influence by an international group of leading scholars from a variety of disciplines. Individual essays address the key concepts of White's intellectual career, including tropes, narrative, figuralism, and the historical sublime while exploring the place of White's work in the philosophy of history, postmodernism, and ethics. They also discuss his role as historian and teacher and apply his ideas to specific historical events.

		Burke, Peter (2009). What is Cultural History? Cambridge: Polity, 168 pp.
		What is Cultural History? has established itself as an essential guide to what cultural historians do and how they do it. Now fully updated in its second edition, leading historian Peter Burke offers afresh his accessible guide to the past, present and future of cultural history, as it has been practised not only in the English-speaking world, but also in Continental Europe, Asia, South America and elsewhere. Burke begins by providing a discussion of the 'classic' phase of cultural history, associated with Jacob Burckhardt and Johan Huizinga, and of the Marxist reaction, from Frederick Antal to Edward Thompson. He then charts the rise of cultural history in more recent times, concentrating on the work of the last generation, often described as the 'New Cultural History'. He places cultural history in its own cultural context, noting links between new approaches to historical thought and writing and the rise of feminism, postcolonial studies and an everyday discourse in which the idea of culture plays an increasingly important part.

		De Baets, Antoon (2008). Responsible History. Oxford & New York: Berghahn Books, 292 pp.
		The abuse of history is common and quite possibly once more on the rise. Although this is well documented, there is no general theory that enables historians to identify, prove, explain, and evaluate the many types of abuse of history. In this book, the author, founder of the Network of Concerned Historians, presents such a theory. Reflecting on the responsible use of history, the author identifies the duties that the living has toward the dead and analyzes the rights to memory and history necessary to fulfill these duties. He concludes his powerful argument by proposing a code of ethics as a guide for responsible historians. This work is vital for any historian who wants to oppose and prevent the abuse of history. "It is lucid, well-strung and yet not shorn of the scholarly bind and rigor: pleasant and compelling". (Ranjan Ghosh, University of North Bengal, India).

		Gorman, Jonathan (2008). Historical Judgement: The Limits of Historiographical Choice. Montreal & Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press, 272 pp.
		Jonathan Gorman analizes the nature of historical judgement, both factual and moral. In doing so, he addresses the essential modern and postmodern problems of historical understanding and the ethics of the writing of history. Many historians are averse to historical theory but this book argues persuasively for a historiography-friendly philosophical response, one that shows how to model historiography in a philosophical way by analysing the historiographical and metaphilosophical developments in the philosophy of other disciplines. Gorman explores what historians conceive of as characterizing their discipline, in particular their views about truth-telling, synthesis of facts, moral judgement, and the history of historiography. Gorman also presents the ideas of philosophers who have thought about history. In bringing the ideas of historians and philosophers together, Gorman provides one of the most important new statements in the philosophy of history to be written in recent years.

		Poirrier, Philippe, dir. (2008). L'histoire culturelle: un "tournant mondial" dans l'historiographie. Dijon: Éditions universitaires de Dijon, 198 pp.
		For two decades, cultural history is one of the most active sectors of historical research. In the face of globalisation the comparative history of this historical setting has not been written yet. This volumen brings into question the reality of a "cultural turn" in historiography. Based on national situations, sixteen contributors analyze how it has emerged and has structured the cultural history, the specificities of the different joints and the organization of the university marked. The aim is to underline the importance of cultural transfer to understand the movement, the dissemination and the appropriation of historiographical models. In his Postface Roger Chartier emphasizes how each tradition has appropriated and developed the proposals of other historiographies on the basis of two models: the Annales and it subsequent variants on the one hand, and Anglo-Saxon historiography emerged from an open Marxism by another.

Historical Culture

Johnson, Paul (2008). Heroes: From Alexander the Great to Churchill and de Gaulle. New York: Harper Perennial, 336 pp.

A galaxy of legendary figures from the annals of Western history comes to life in this stirring sequel to Intellectuals and Creators. In this enlightening and entertaining work, Paul Johnson, the bestselling author of Intellectuals and Creators, approaches the subject of heroism with stirring examples of men and women from every age, walk of life, and corner of the planet who have inspired and transformed not only their own cultures but the entire world as well.

Heroes includes: Samson, Judith, and Deborah • Henry V and Joan of Arc • Elizabeth I and Walter Raleigh • George Washington, the Duke of Wellington, and Lord Nelson • Emily Dickinson • Abraham Lincoln and Robert E. Lee • Mae West and Marilyn Monroe • Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II.

		Figes, Orlando (2008). The Whisperers: Private Life in Stalin's Russia. New York: Picador, 784 pp.
		One in eight people in the Soviet Union were victims of Stalin's terror—virtually no family was untouched by purges, the gulag, forced collectivization and resettlement, says Figes in this nuanced, highly textured look at personal life under Soviet rule. Relying heavily on oral history, Figes highlights how individuals attempted to maintain a sense of self even in the worst years of the Stalinist purges. More often than not, they learned to stay silent and conform, even after Khrushchev's thaw lifted the veil on some of Stalin's crimes. Figes shows how, beginning with the 1917 Bolshevik revolution, the Soviet experience radically changed personal and family life. People denied their experiences, roots and their condemned relatives in order to survive and, in some cases, thrive. At the same time, Soviet residents achieved great things, including the defeat of the Nazis in WWII, that Russians remember with pride. By seamlessly integrating the political, cultural and social with the stories of particular people and families, Figes retells all of Soviet history and enlarges our understanding of it.

		Wilma and Georg Iggers (2006). Two Lives in Uncertain Times: Facing the Challenges of the 20th Century as Scholar and Citizens. New York & Oxford: Berghahn Books, 230 pp.
		Wilma and Georg Iggers came from different backgrounds. They both escaped with their parents from Nazi persecution to North America where they met as students. As a married couple they went to the American South where they taught in two historic Black colleges and were involved in the civil rights movement. In 1961 they began going to West Germany regularly not only to do research but also to further reconciliation between Jews and Germans, and contributing to a critical confrontation with the German past. After 1966 they frequently visited East Germany and Czechslovakia in an attempt to build bridges in the midst of the Cold War. The book relates their different experiences of childhood and adolescence and their lives together over almost six decades during which they endeavored to combine their roles as parents and scholars with their social and political engagements. In many ways this is not merely a dual biography but a history of changing conditions in America and Europe during turbulent times.

		Hugues-Warrington, Marnie (2006). History Goes to the Movies: Studying History on Film. London: Routledge, 230 pp.
		Written from an international perspective, this book offers a lucid introduction to the ways films are made and used, cumulating with the exploration of the fundamental question, what is history and what is it for? Incorporating film analysis, advertisements, merchandise and internet forums; and ranging from late-nineteenth century short films to twenty-first century DVD ‘special editions’, this survey evaluates the varied ways in which filmmakers, promoters, viewers and scholars understand film as history. From Saving Private Ryan to Picnic at Hanging Rock to Pocahontas, History Goes to the Movies considers that history is not simply to be found in films, but in the perceptions and arguments of those who make and view them. This helpful introductory text blends historical and methodological issues with real examples to create a systematic guide to issues involved in using historical film in the study of history.