developed, soi sideration by those may be c rians produce knowledge of the past, of soutees, These include the m The Status of Historical Knowledge | | account goes somthe past, the manipulative use of historical arguments in public life goes largely unchallenged. Unsubstantiated claims, which need tobe distinguished al knowledge’ ate widely STANDARDS AND QUALITY is chapter [examine nervously, at highly authoritative knowledge al sciences, This isnot a new issue: ever since pro- im in a vigorous and coordinated that they were setting new standards of ice knowledge of such high quality is deemed the very opposite of bath ideology and opi selves have been subjected to strong critq to authority and objectivity are flawed. Ne the truth claims made by scientists, there is widespread confidence in science «5 paradigm of knowledge. The alternative, and one {shall argue for in this y from within the discipline to take ts distinctive qualities - we do not study nature exper past human societies, over which we have no control ‘TRUTH AND RELIABILITY Even in the remarks [have just made, 1 have shifted the grounds of the argu ment somewhat from an emphasis on truth to one on reliability. We must now turn to the concept of tut relevance nomena, such as military manoeuvres a to give accounts that would and ace94 The satus of historical tis, by any standards, absolutly satisfactory distant, all-encompassing ove privileged status. At one level is it possible for historical work to achieve so much? At another level, it appears misguided because hubristc, i that is simply not a ew and tests capable isis simply unrealistic ~ how lar arguments can be mounted in relation to objectivity the very term |, disinterested perspectives, which we know to be chimeras, ina subject where evaluation and interpre- s One problem with the term ‘objectivity’ is th bias. although we now re ble, the commitment vantage points to be unat sidering carefully a wide range of evidence is noneth fact, iis central to the practice of history. ‘weighing up and con- latter. It could just as well be argued that objectivity is faulty because itis cold and detached, whereas subjectivity is more warmly, honestly human. The bis ies somewinere in between: it combines open recogni WAYS OF KNOWING Perhaps part of the problem concerns ‘knowledge’ itself, The use of a single term in relation to a wide range of disciplines does rather suggest that jams, Keywords, pp. 308-12 forthe tortuous history of nediately app information, undersi that these involve distinct rel js a world of difference between ‘information, wl nk of data and facts, and ‘understanding, which implies a deep grasp of processes ity for al ‘wisdom’ and that ‘knowledge’ has a var . explanation and wisdom, and ‘understanding’ also sugges an abit to empathise wit up a sense of what motivated the nevitable that there should be no consensus on the desirable balance hetween these forms of knowledge ntfication with people in the past implies an emotional commit igements, will for others it ws previously neglected viewpoints pat igs with varying degrees fields on aseale, but of [tis commonplace to recognise that we kne pieces of information.) Wh ‘achioving high levels of certainty is hardly a secret. Take the obvious example ng, People le rather frequently sometimes they are aware ofit, at athers difficult to prove that someone has led —legal processes w be considerably easier if lying were amenable to scrupulous historians realise that evidence may be deceptive and endeavour to incorporate appropriate forms of awareness into their practices. The 1s will depend on the available evidence ~ these points, hence my emphasis on comm people can and must be tained to tink ex fe, The point is perfectly obvious if ‘we consider for a moment the id ‘whether someone or something, is96 The stats of historical knowledge assumption, ‘The more independent witnesses corroborate the more reliable it will be deemed. This is why one ofthe central parts of the historian’ eraft luating a variety of accounts and diverse types have expres terms of truth, but precisely because the term st leading, forreaders. istorian’s assessment of them will necessarily depend on s ‘whether they are predisposed to be critical of the ancien régime or sympathetic to the difficulties ofthe French monarchy, to see class as atthe root of the competing views wit argued for more or less co impressive In making a final judgement on a historical accout of trust "have just referred to evidence and aso to sourves asf the two were more cor ess the same thing, but these words do carry distinct co ly'raw’ materials of whatever kind, They have the potential co beat been made ~ evidence bears witness to an issue Ina sense evidence is a ph sophiicel concept - if 1 ask for evidence of something, Ihave a set of logical each side has to provide the evidence it finds most compelling 10 the cas «question, and dhe uty has to weight it all up, just as historians do. The fa significant proportion of criminal convictions are found tobe ‘unsafe vividly ilustrates how extremely complex the whole process is. As a concept, ‘evi dence’ draws attention o the need to demonstrate points in a manne Wags of me willbe convincing tothe relevant community of beliet. A discipline is indeed 4 community of belie -asstimptions about adequate knowledge are neg verge that vary ate and status of historical knowl- place and circumstance; accordingly, the n edge cannot be constants, "There isa further concept we can consider in relation to the relibil history ~ the d me historians are very fond of stressing the cen- tality of documents in making any case about the past. What is meant by doc- tument, the means a special kind of primary s a direct xe or death, passports and visas, transcriptions of legal proceedings, letters, telegrams would all be examples, I have chosen them precisely because they seem strongly factual, especially reliabl dos in their documentary status. To document means to make a record of and, by implication, to generate an authoritative, authentic account. Hence one sense of ‘documentary, when used of films, television programmes and photographs. Infact, such records who place special trust in some categories of documents, to have faith in sources that appear authentic. it may be that habits of wanting, even needing to y of true be recovered. A more critical view of what iis possible for historians to know has generated anxieties among many practitioners, and these should be viewed sympathetically. Criticism does unsettle. On t prompted by claims ig of these words stressed! revealing, meaning ~ personal testimony. Wit movements for example, there has been an100 The satus of h cal knowledge pictures have been widely used by historians. Evans’ photographs are amazing because ike Agee, he identified so strongly with the poor whites with whom. they lived for several months. Furthermore, unlike some con ets, Evans the claims) di pose themselves. The 1M be sceptical about what we can ‘know’ AE such documentary activities, Photographs, for instance, can be printed in many different ways, cipped, altered in size, given var perso tional level, so much so that ‘the depression’ and some kinds of documentary photography have become virtually synonymous." ‘am suggesting that there are many ways of knowing; sometimes they become so entangled that ii difficult to be clear about the epistemological claims involved, Ihave evoked these diverse ways by referring to notions, such as information, insight, explanation, understanding and wisdom, that ae all rience and the ability to discern and comprehend its main pattems Disciplines vary in the value they give to these different forms of knowing, ledge a particularly complex matter ust because there EVALUATING HISTORICAL WRITINGS: SOURCES teria for judging the acequacy of historical writings relate to three aspects of the discipline: the use and interpretation of sources; the apiness and fon the depres Basingstoke, 1829-194, New York, 1988, See also Basingstoke, 1988; G. Claske, The Capa: Phorograziis, New York. 1931 sources have been used, although we need to bear inherently heterogeneous category, ‘most basic sub-division is between primary and secondary sources, whi ugh it appears simple, can be quite blurred, a we have already not riginal documents produced at ‘and the implication i that these bear direct witness wed and hands of another hi ey t necessarily historians, but anyone wi -nted upon & historical situation, possibly using primary sources, Participant in it. However, a moment’ reflection reveals that y one for another, and vice versa Journalism is a good he point ~ as commentary it would become a primary: question, and the primary/secondary distinct sessment ofthe source’ ree s used. In both cases the mode of produ given sources requires scrutiny. In mary’ sources, but seek whatever ish are particularly valuable fora given project historians then find that using a variety of sources wi writing a gen be essential to timate records, such nments by a varity of fiends, acquain tances, colleagues, relations and so on. Yet, for a study of an ag, their reputation, journalism and other represe Drisileged sources: what people sad and did in private would be less relevant except in so far as it shaped pubtic perceptions of them, An intllec- ‘ual biography works and achieven popular biography wo sources that recounted stories in the ind reading and historical ‘colour, draw on for good‘The status of historical knowledge Judging which sources are relevant to a specific piece of re anatt, and often outstanding work derives from an imaginative use of sources that are at first sight oblique, So, of any piece of historical writing we need to ask, what sources have been used, how have they been selected, have they wed in their entirety oF art, have they been interpreted in a specificities of. suggest the need for a context in which to evaluate any piece o is itpossible to answer these questions unless we have other pieces for com parison? Hence the use of secondary sources is as vital as primary ones. Is the ‘of elevant work by other historians? Deciding whet is ‘relevant ent ideas and do ioviledge their debts bot fetal? Many of these questions are answered s of footnotes, may be helpful a this point to make explicit an issue that is always lurking around the question ofthe use and selection of sources. There is a widespread fantasy among historians and their readers concerning comprehensiveness. the author is expected to read ‘everything iety commonly experienced by professional historians. We want indeed are expected, fo exhibit kind of mastery of our fields and of our chosen topics. ‘We constantly worry about missing something, Such fears need to be probed. The: ympleteness is simply impractical, especial be made between new information and new ns, and between ‘writings that ae likely to change a research project and those that are not With the development of the internet the problem has got far worse, and this is not just because ofthe volume of materials made available, but because it is increasingly dificult, esp U1 CLA Gratton, The Foomote:A Curlous History, Cambridge, Mass, 1997, mean the practices of scholarly footnotes, which embod) indispensable in academic life. Unfor tion, since the growth in the amount pul to find works in footnotes ‘The goal of reading and working comprehensi nplies a seriousness of purpose tha helps to raise the quai ofbistorical knowledge. But because comprehensiveness can be so hard, if not absolute criteria, but must be evaluated in terms of the goals, selections and 0 on operative in any given piece of writing. Critics are naturally entitled to der value ofthese goals and ofthe forms of selection they dic- ASSESSING FRAMEWORKS sources are intertwined. Genet work chosen exercises a large measure of vice versa A harmonious fit between framework and materials is en the key concepts in the framework been adequately explained an Justified? Is helpful if authors explain why they have chosen on rather than other, and what the strengths and shortcomings of competingonce again i is clear that hi text JUDGING WRITING ‘The third way ly, Such a status is recogni ugh the (emotional) appeal of pictures and re so-called ‘grand narrative’ has lost favour with many hi ndeed is thought by many to be ideologically suspect. Big st appeal more to historians who are not narrowly academic. The a ‘sbecoming ‘Tuchman isa good example ~ she twice won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize and Shion106 The stats of historical knowledge ity of historical writing is absoluely ce ss. Thave already suggested that tis rests in parton an Using her vast experience of archival materials, she draws out the most teling, pointed, ‘examples, and the quality of her writing suggests a strong abi 1 point of view ofthe less privileged. These and this is true of al effective his ofhow human beings believable. There is no consensus on these matters either, and it remains a sad fact about the discipline that crudely reductive assumptions about the primacy produced. The contrast with a ‘hot be mote marked. In her discussions of the May she continually stesses thee temporary forms of identity that lay bebin neertain and changeable; sometimes discussed at asa result throw up her han doing what can be done, that and the accumulated insights of the discipline permit.” EXPLANATION {ear that some professional historians may be quite the status of historical knowledge. that a book of this kind should produce unequivocal erally meant by ‘explanation Dieionary de ‘making phenomena esting that historical interpretation is a as the soutoes selected, the manner oft ‘orian works, ther training, commitments and prejudices. the erm ‘explanation’ is that it implies a more rigorous and logically exacting process than does interpretation. Explanation is after alla philosophical teem, and phitosophers who analyse forms of knowledge are interested not justin how particular ds {in comparing the ity and types of explanation that they offer. While these exetcses for the philasophiy of history, am not sure that they ich film, The Return of Marta G troduction tothe Philosophy of History, Oxford, 1998, chs and C. Loyd, By s108 The status of historical knowledge explanation should be. The differences derive from theoretical com preferences, ideologies, beliefs and so on. Secomd, the degree to nal process or the present in monographs with those given in museums. rationally, historians have sought to explain the origins of major pat tems of change and to offer causal explanations of them. (Hence the popu larity of exam questions w hy the Renaissance, the Chinese revolu- ted ‘with these questions because I wanted first to bulld up a sense of how torical accounts can be evaluated, and specifically to suggest that evaluation always happens ina context. Major elements ofthis context include avilable sources, other historical accounts, prevailing assumptions about human fashion. Hstoriographical fashion covers a grt references concerning evidence and explana ‘One pertinent hist explanations, taken place over the last 30 years, A number of trends account for this shift ‘The range of types of history undertaken has expanded hugely, which has longer imagine that causes were either politieal or eco rather see all of these at work, and find them all dependent upon, ot very least bound up with, cultural shifts, with changes in ways of under- standing and feeling about the world. In other words, conventional hierarchies of explanations no longer seem as plausible as they once did, Nor do we like wide range of factors, Hence more by economic than by political factors? have come to seem ph 109 ast have a ed by the nges that go ‘These are, by their very nature, harder to pin dow expla: according to which one thing happens frst and produces T would suggest that two further issues may be linked with ate concerning causality and history. The frst coneems redi + broached in earlier chapters. Once historians dull on mi an emphasis on single causes appears reductionstc It would be easy to parody hi the complexity st also be seen in significance of the unconscious cannot be dismissed, and psychological mat- i. Furthermore, psycho- coves a great deal to the historical dimensions of psychoanalysis. Like many ofits key thinkers, Freud was profoundly interested in historical study. Psychoanalysis asa field is historical in tha it examines the nature and content of memory, legacies of lly persistent symbols, and cultural praduets as evidence ‘one impact of post-moden been to insist not just on the complexity and diverwedge deceptive. The more the complexities ofthe raw’ materials are acknowledged, the harder it isto generate unselfcanscious confidence in crisp causal expla nations, For some historians the intricate, tricky nature of al sources is an i forward, hence tive, and, if you lik, ‘biased, even when the author was unaware of any falsification. Accordingly, the status of historical knowledge is afar more com: plex matter than it seems, and certainty isan elusive quality In fact there are some much broader themes here, usefully distinguish a number of different aspects of tra sumably, makin so extremely rat we each for a word ke fraud, such as duplicity Recent debstes about the ‘reality’ ofthe Holocaust exemplify the point. rad: ght-wing revisionist position, which casts doubt on established claisns about the numbers of Jews killed, has to account for existing supporting evi dence, and thereby to engage in debates about interpretation and deception, torians have become increasingly past, and Natalie Davis in parti Speculation and belief 111 and hence exc terest goes deeper than this. Such cases involve complex legal procedures and by studying them we can reconstruct hotions of evidence in other societies, think about shei standards of proof, and consider their notions of an adequate explanation. In this way h research can be a means of reflecting, albeit indirectly, upon t ‘SPECULATION AND BELIEF would be possible to recast a great deal of what Lam saying by historians seem to Feel more comfortable now with the idea that perhaps this is what has mad n counterfactuals possible. This involves, asthe term suggests, set- ting ase known outcomes, and asking about alternative scenarios ‘what story. What if Wiliam the Conqueror had been defeated atthe Battle of tantinople had not ‘fallen’ to the Turks in 1453 What Whet ifthe South had has long been played for its entertainment value. Recently, alin the hands of professional historians, it has been used as a device to shaepen historical though this enterprise is hardly ideotogical example, to affirm traditional modes of history by privileging ‘The key concept in th be worth considering what is not taken to be historical Knowledge. are relevant here: opinion, ideology and myth. ‘Opinion is used when we want112 The status of historical knowledge modification Myths accounts. In charge a historian Yet in ordinary usage, ju: he key to producing something Bridge 13 purpose of this book to that the practice of history vecessarily eclectic and pra ~that to the practice of rely drawn out for c odisation may be defined as the carving of pa n depends precisely on historians’ contexts.ICICI itespretation, This inheritance tionalised period terms seemt to hamper fresh th sed, 50 t HISTORY AND TIME and shoul be accorded ns are not the only e effects of the passage of time or ht societies. Inevitably these are extraordinarily diverse; there are no predictable andthe pace of change depends not only on particular circumstances, icant players, Nonetheless, shapes of history, and they toothers; assumptions behind ther, would not the restor ruption between two mon sks th “The basic measures ted by historians. But they use them as they give them meaning by assigning additional tags to them, as Daniel dificult to bring them then imagining oneself o be a Mar conscious inspection. oF an anthropolo- ‘The recording of exceedingly old a116 Per example, by basi record events dispassionately and as accurately as possible. Dates, chronology and forms of periodisation stil seem to offer value-fre information, but this is deceptive, Assumptions are built into the very recording processes them- quite basie get the inventiveness of y sand others add layer upon layer of meaning to events and eras. Historians should be sceptical about the accuracy of chronological infonnation, aware of how units of time shape histo pretation, often in quite arbitrary ways, and alive to the manner project patterns onto the pas, inorder to make them meaningful All of these factors affect the types of research done; for instance, by dra towards some periods a exciting and all because those who. plex ways. The mi is a contral part of these processes of identification preci work at a variety of emotional and intellectual levels, ought about and represented because they DIVIDING UP THE PAST ‘There are a number of criteria according to which the past can be divided u not just to produce manageable chunks but to organise our thoughts about it fer readings and accounts of, In effect we are talking about a range of taxonomic systems, which overlap, and can be used in a variety of ways. We are that dogs are dassiid scoring t0 context: for zoological, breeding, showing, feeding and ther practical purposes ~ those that bite or bark and those that do not, for example. Bach criterion places the emphasis in a diferent place, and has a df ferent use, the value of which is contest-dependent. Nonetheless we can com epoch, century, decade or millennium, in terms of the type o government, and according to perceived cultural styles, moods and patterns ship in gover elmine (Germany). Thus a ruler ora family of rulers can embody as if the one who heads the state holds together disparate bis. ‘on aperod unity that may cx ane ata symbol ‘ot bodies of rulers. Not just Hitler, but small fragments assoc virtue of the idea thata whole their association with areas such as archit culture dominance rooted in ethnicity [tis not just rulers and dominant groups, but lected leaders wito ean function in this way. In the case of eighteenth-cen: tury England, we might remember a suecession of powerful prime ministers 10 speak of an age of Walpole or an age of suspect this form ‘of periodisation is particularly compeling when the county in question has undergone a profound transformation or exss under someone’ leadership. treated uncritically by professional historians. Nor d the associations between epochs and po ‘want to suggest that leaders ae without foundation,Lis Periods offering examples of one type of periodisation, and drawing out ‘what is Furthermore, we should note how many ofthe Louis Quinze, Napoteo itis also used, and has been since the eightee tury to sum up a period and to differentiate between periods ~ rococo and neo-classical, for example. Style and periodisation are closely sow applied beyond the boundaries of Britain ot its empire to sug- styles ofthe second half of the nineteenth century. Furthermore, as is evident in the phrase ‘Victorian values, it suggests style of thinking and responding to the worl. Indeed, the very phrase implies a response to th two polarised responses: either approval for strong jeism of their inappropriate use in a later effect of period terms by implying tat these ate merely matters of perso preference o taste. Thisis not my intention, On the contrary, period and style terms shape the way in which whole eras can be imagined and thought about, asthe phrase “Victorian values’ rev EVENTS AND PERTODS. portant criterion for diving up the past is key event dons and wars. One of the most significant Art History: An Introd NJ. 1974, Rococo is uomis and periods of these ~ the birth of oa single historical event can cultural baggage it necessarily ce one counts backwards or eras sc and forwards for those portance of the turning point is made manifest, and every time the dating system is used, he global significance ofthe birth of Christ is ingly asserted. There is now a certain distaste for using a a this is understandable, since Christian {am not sure that sc and cs (variously, before ly solves the p simply repackages the same idea. This example vexed question of whether standard, universal dating systems are ly necessary or helpful. So long as conversions between systems are pos it would seem to be most generative for historians to work within the forms of dating of the culture they study, although they wil to rethink the forms of periadisation they are using since thi torical interpretation ‘examples of this approach, however There could be no more eloquent ex be made into a st ways be needing are intricate and of the point than the French Revolution, of course only the beginning of it constitutes a clea event’ and ever: ‘The fal ofthe Basile on 14 July 1769, when a hated symbol the mob, has 1, recognised as such at the ttne, The abo: formation of subjects into citizens exemplify evolution was also taken to be symptomatic of later ¢ mand warfare, for example. The French were ‘aking in recent times nor the first ins of many diferent orient Hobsbawmis The Age of Ren lished in 1962, is a case in point. ons could jot on: Europe,vents and periods 121 120 Peridisation emblem, even if what itis an emblem of varies dramati ebrating centenaries makes the point paricula There are many phenomena that showed marked con olutionary divide, despite its tumultuous nature ime as a special event, which would forever course of European, possibly wor was a conscious process of col-122 Perlis the cult of the supreme being Historians need to pay careful attention to deliberate re-thinking about the naming and measurement of time. Third, the Revolution raises vast questions about periodistion, especially ona lage scale in of decades. These cannot be resolved ey involve models of change in general, of revo process, and ofthe specific period, We can see this particulary For many commentators, the French Rev: ‘was the beginning of the ‘modern’ era - but what does such a claim involve? We now recognise the completes of modern’ and ‘modernity’ and ritory of research, of finding information that will clarify the matter, but of nterrogating received ways of patterning, organising an imagining the past It should come as no surprise to discover that dramatic changes, used as historical markers, carry certain magic. There is a mystique to them; perhaps they are the historical equivalent of a rite de passage. This was captured, for ‘can easly imagine changes in past societies a resembling the major, symbolic transitions ofan individual life course ~birth, growth, maturity, death and so ‘on. A goad example ofthis isthe ubiquity of falls-of the Roman empire, Toy, ‘Constantinople. The naming, recognition and packaging of stich tran fying’ Ido not mean that everyone rere isa shared sense ofthe general signifi cance of particular event or process, and that it becomes an accessible point of reference, sometimes as it is happening and more often for later genera tions, Asa result, these events act as organising pri research. ‘To my mind one ofthe most striking instances of this phenomenon is the First World War of 1914-18, where we can see the processes and I define a just people on the participants everyone who had fo cope with its impa 1 calendar see C i periods battlefields" Those who treated shellshock victims, for example, had to think anew about trauma, and therefore also had to think anew about the nature man hind. Second, the management of social issues was changed ly by the war, twa societies were ‘major transition taking place. The depression on te one hand and the wide spread commitment to welfare policies on the other are examples of phe: nomena that brought fundamental changes to many geographical areas it the istorians have certainly recog ical power. Ths is only how an event can be used to construct periodisations. Fourth, been given significance as an organising event through its cultural represen: tation, both atthe time and subsequently, The current enthusiasm for books about that wat, whether fictional or not, is indicative ofthe gi significant swathes ofthe population. Poetry and poets have played a crucial includes upon the ways in which the past lent example of this very point, and fam ment cdisaton is involved. Our sense of ‘natural bout posedly natural boundaries from a critical standpoint, and may, as a rest want to develop arguments that run contrary to common ideas; that, indeed, istheirjob, But they too inhabit a wider world in which co Marwick, The Detuge: Basingstoke, 1091 12 AUMayer, The Persistence ofthe Old Regime: Europ York, 1981. On poctry see, J. Silkin, Our of Bartle: 7 socond edition, Basingstoke, 1996; D. Hibberd, ed124 Periodisation affirmed in arenas over which historians have no control. The two world wars are in that took part an vd 1 very much doubt that a rai ever take hold, even assuming that there to back it up. have spent some as period organisers because they lend thernselves to symbolisation. Fecause they can be presented as unitary, simple, discrete units, they eas sete ‘means cultures atford them, DESCRIPTION AND PERIODISATION { shall urn nov toa third form of periodisation, one that is less overtly emo- mally charged, and more subt ‘works. This is descriptions of time period, which sounds simple, but, as is apparent from the examples ‘modern’ and ‘early modem, they are rather slippery and contain hidden ‘agendas. There are many different de ad we have fen helpful to think about the opposite of such terms, of what stand in contrast to. The most familiar pairing until che nineteenth century was ancient and moder.'*This is instructive, ince the contrast indicated, in the seventeenth century for example, an anxiety about whether then could ever live up to the high achievements of ancient new, up to date, was increasingly given value for these reasons alone.’ Moder’ could then be associated with inno is palpably elated tothe present and tothe future, Thus in advertising from the eatly twentieth century, ‘clean ‘hygienic, ‘not using coal’ and so on, Modern history to the prese! mpl i to be explained, as if this were the point were leading, and it departs from the assump- Deseriptan and periedisation 125 ‘Modem’ can also be given a rather different set of infle have just described are in fact relative, that is, modem is defined in r to where one is standing now. The second way of thinking about modernity qual characteristics of modernity are. Poss conor French Revolution, the development of cultural avant-gardes, post-Newtonian, science, the use of steam (then electric and nuclear) power in indust duction, mass production, the discovery of the unconscious, and the legacy of the Enlightersmen ies, that nd causal prio ‘There is an implied contrast between early modern and modern history. the main distinction had been between the medieval period and ty, where the former was construed as more st also as lacking that make sxample, In current historical usage, the early undefined. Early modem also implies a kind oft s moving towards moder nity bu tis not quite there yet. The term suggests a dependence upon, a sub- ordination to what is modern, a fit were a mere prelude, the overture to the Modernity of English Art 1914-30, ne Journal of Moder ross a wideig move of the earth-centred recognisably like the one we ns path-breaking Agi ames to periods with any ntl The Age of Capital, comes extremely difficult to give degree of confidence. Despite Hobsbawmn which covers 1848-7 ns, such a5 ‘contemporary’ or mer is now gaining currency, but how far back does contemporary history go? Are we thinking about Within living memory? In that case, contemporary history would include muchother times it means simply the ‘twentioth ply by giving it a number may sound infact centuries ae often used in ways that a whole century in this way is deceptive in any e phiaseis sometimes taken to cover the period ng’ eighteenth century, rom the Glorious Revolution to the Battle of Waterloo.” This particular perspective i idiosyncratic and polit, ically freighted: itis controversial even ina British context and makes no par ticular sense to students of other European countries. historian of France of the eighteenth century also looks quite different, given the significance of the decisive break from the mother country in the 1770s. That is, to cast the noment of independence may not be a really useful marker for the organi sation of historical work. An event that symbolises the change may be impor- san of the time at which it occurred. The Enlighten ‘ment’ carries quite specific connotations in that it suggests not only intellec- al changes, but more specifically a move towards istic and democratic worldview. Specialists debate these matte remains that associations, such as that between t ularisation, are entrenched, words e is problematic ~a point we have already noted in relation to modernisation, mis that they appear to refer to specific periods, while in Fact f religious revival, a phenomenon that has rarely been st Enlightenment have varied quite dramat the emphasis on a ‘high’ Enlighten ed, that is, a concentra upon major thinker, such as Diderot, Rousseau and Voltaire, It was also usual rivilege France as its epitome: civilised, urbane, sophisticated. By the lat 1970s, work began to be published which challenged these views, and although the temporal boundaries ofthe Enlightenment wil always Low life a y and we can terms of geographical areas, social groups and institu Enlightenment can now be placed together with som pretations ofthe innovation — including the period it covers, contain wider implications, “onset of modemity, forthe boundaries between modern and early modern, ‘and for the conceptualisation of different kinds of change, since it gives pri- spon socal practice ~state- ve discussed descriptions of periods in tert of large swathes of time, but we also have notion fwenties and Swingin ties, which are considerably more focused. So why are some decades seen ‘worthy of naming as special, others less so? Why are some seen as definable periods (especially the ast of a century) and others not® There are no stright- forward answers to these questions, which are designed to provoke ideas N x, Cambridge, 1968; B Parte and M.53 The Beatles by Linda McCartney, 1967 parable fa ies is an organising idea an torians writing about FURTHER PERIOD TERMS132 Periadisation tians than it does to intellectual and cultural ones. Since these style terms ae, as we have already noted, powerful metaphors capable of further extension, when we speak of governments as baroque or istic category, and is also used to describe an era of European history, although its boundaries, ‘are, not surprisingly, dificult to define. In all these forms of periodisation we are thinking about ways of meaningfully evoking a period - the use of style terms is just another case in point, ‘Style’ implies that there is distinctive flavour to a period, a flavour that suffuses its main products: music, at nds a special kind of nature, y stylistic, such as Georgian, as used, for example, ofthe USA. I do not mean something narrow and connoissoutial when | say aesthetic rather {want to suggest that mat ters of taste, of cultural preference, of intellectual and sensual response, are, ‘whether we lke itor no, always at work when we organise our ideas of the past” Myar that one off tant forms of classification is periodisation. Clas sification puts ike things together ina colierent, systematic manner. Over the centuries, historians (but not only historians) have developed comfortable, ‘Theme in the History of Taste, Manchester, 1998. early how a whole range of reactions fo the past get shape it into discrete periods — reactions that are aesthet ‘mation? These are similar to ‘the Enlightenme ‘ment and they suggest a set of themes and preoccupations as historical period, In the case ofthe Reformation, there is m about where the origins of change can be located tion, a process not an event, in the history of| ‘he Langer significance of Ch it was the d belief, where the pace of change can rians accordingly stress the local variations, the very different forms Chris- y took; the complex interactions between reformers and those they wished to change. As a result, the location of chronological boundaries becomes even more dificult, since the phenomenon isefs protean.» Whe did Reformation? The possibilty immediat ich has rarely been seen as including religious revival, yet the Wesley brothers, the reluctant founders ofa separate Metho can also be understood as responding to and expounding En to reflect in this way, it becomes apparent why key indeed they are central to human existence, but they function in ways that are not necessarily conducive to deeper historical understanding. Luther’ actions134 Povo indeed be significa somewhat arbitrary when used to mark the beg ‘ment or period such as the Reform: ier heretical movements, and he ‘Are books, which aso at as symbols, more secure historical indicators? We for instance, want to take the publication of Descartes’ Disco jor turing point in European history, and starting point for philosophy. he Enlightenment, aswell as of is not inherently less arbitrary than any ather sy tation. To any individual a given symbol will be more or less satisfying, all contain both implicit agendas and a measure of arbitrariness. They are indispensable, but not to be used uncritcally, however seductive they appear at firs sight. METAPHORS AND THEMES: Another way of delineating periods, by themes, also warrants careful reflec- the desire to lend unity to period, inthis case via a combination of descrip tion and metaphor. Of course all descriptions are metaphorically charge bh these themes work in different ways. “The age of revolution’ may be consid Toes imply that her ages were more certain, and we might be able to puzzle out that a cli being made about a twentieth-century loss of various kinds of structures, ngstoke, Metaphors and themes 135 possibly psychic, economic, social or politcal, that gave shape sa want to draw further example, because ofits exceptional historiographical interest the depression around the 1930s. There is something quite striking about the use of a rertn we have come to associate primarily with a mood 0 describe an era, Whatever the origins ofthe term, its emotiv « highly specific manner. It evokes the dependen large-scale economic trends, unexpected emisera passion on more than an ideas nts and significant social groupings, especially of for trends within the period itself, during al solutions to inequalities, to euthoritarian regitnes andl jon in their ovm immediate surroundings." Needless to say there is no consensts onthe chronological boundaries around depression.® And since many countries experienced an ecor ‘enon that was close to being global, there were matked geographical varia however, quite common. Many period terms categories historical actors themselves used, of out of those forged by suc ceeding generations for their own pusposes. They then become reife, case ofthe depression, the desiet non, render the whole process more transparent My aim is this chapter has been to demonstrate that forms of periodisa tion are theoretically dense, In particular | have argued that the manner of naming periods contains assumptions about where historical agency lies and Great Depression: An bi Worldwide Deprosion of| cal ‘The Myth ofthe Great Depress peraphy, Sata 1873-1895, second 0138 Periodisation is strong, and to some degret an individual, an event, a style of government or a theme. the totality of the historian’ imagination, which works th images, is engaged, Hence, resare quite distinct. By to shape views of past jew of the eighteenth times ~ the French, for exampl century than do the Englis! HISTORIOGRAPHY AND PERIODISATION oles other historiographical issues as well, and in clos chapter I shall mention just two of them, in order to reafirm the importance of critical reflection upon the precise manner in which time is at the heart of itmportant skils, and the chosen time-span should always fit the kind of project envisaged, Let us take the example now, sadly, lite practised. The defence of taking long time-spans is perfectly clear and it relates to human rhythms, to the pace of some kinds of change, that change extremely slowly, of at least have done so at some periods. Fu ‘thermore, Braudel considered the relationships between different levels of the early moder period, and it have worked for later Historiography an pei ‘There are specific historical subfields, which, by their very work across very long time-spans. The most obvious examples are demog. raphy and historical epidemiology, and some ateas of econo nly do the trends need to be even rogional trends are to be ari he accidents of record-keeping and preservatl they go right to the core of historical explanation. f uments are tran tive to ask q ely how do change? At what pace do they do so? How ate ideas and pr from group to group, person to person, region to regio transmission typically take? These are extraordinary chal are too often simply ignored jow long does such oging issues, eich many early ere the nature and pace of change is parti ficult to reconstruct. By contrast, in recent yeas, there has been a growth af interest in extremely fine-grained, small-scale historical studies. This is related to winat és sometimes called micto-history, which can involve looking at a small community or geographical area over long periods of time. Case-study ‘onthe ea that we can get at larger pattems by looking care- this trend in part reflects duce original research, constraints of anxieties about historical explanation and more speci138 Periodisaion explanations to which I alluded in Chapter 4, Rather than focusing on big events and their origins, such history explores the intricate textures of ali and a sense of scale can be introduced through taking 2 longet ne and concep- toriographical issue concerns memory. The writing of history is about the transnission of memories, although the extent to which ths is explicit cer memories of others when conserved and to want to lematise the very notion of memory. We could do this, for instance, through critical reflection upon the relatively neve field of oral history which relies upon the existence of memory and upot tary involves talking to older people about aspects of life that would otherwise 30 unstudied, Accordingly it has aid patticular emphasis on the voices of those who are marginal, neglected, forg issue it can address, At frst true, Hence oral generated in this ‘way by other means. This isa richly human field, where scholars ae creating eas some ofthe com- in which assumptions the effet ofthe passage of time upon human consciousness shape the the privileged ‘of their memories. The practice of oral history plexties of memory, of historians’ use oft, and the we aby ly important, because the processes of selection and the ‘memories are represented are supercharged with meaning, ‘Thus there are more general trends at work in the coupling of History and emory, to use the name of an Israeli journal founded in 1988, Historians of ‘many kinds have become interested in the nature of memory. This is because important historical phenomenon in its ‘The Holocaust would seem to he a particularly compelling example of more general points about history and memory. There is now an unprece- dented interest in that complex amalgam of processes we have named ‘the Holocaust ~it is now at a relatively safe distance, while many ofthe partic: pants ate still alive. This is by definition a temporary state, 1 has given us to many forms of| is occurring ina con the subject proliferate as never before, Memory, comm memorialising, are all involved, and each is subtly different, Historians ae rele. Itis a mélée precisely because there are a number of conflicting per spective, and the conflicts are not only about what did or did not happen, st, the validity of memory, the wider so in relation to judicial processes, a ‘of rettospective punishment and blameusive domain ofthe discipline of history They are in the public tutional const rec for professional idea of ‘public history’ probing the Om Cay WHAT IS PUBLIC HISTORY? ndergraduate courses. This fessional historians, and they teach wl there were little else. Among other things, public history is popular history ~ is seen or read by large numbers of people and has most For some historians, ‘pi story movernents, which are critical of