New Perspectives on Historical Writing

The essays in this collection are classic expositions of some of the more interesting debates in historical writing from the early 1990s in a largely English (with leanings toward the French Annalistes and German Alltagsgeschichte) tradition of historical writing. Burke and the contributors can hardly be blamed for being only as good as their areas of expertise and interest, but it is worth bearing in mind that the book was not considered comprehensive by some American critics and was critiqued for neglecting areas such as cliometrics and psychohistory. Nonetheless, some of the pieces are absolute must-reads for theoretical explorations of different approaches. Levi's essay on micro-history, for instance, is masterful and provocative, even if he disclaims any responsibility for speaking on behalf of all of the Italian practitioners of microhistory. I must say, though, I found Joan W Scott's piece on gender and history to be neither as interesting or provocative as the essays she published in her own volumes, or her classic essay "The Evidence of Experience." Sadly, probably the best essay in the volume, Roy Porter's essay on the history of the body, has been replaced in this new edition, because, as Porter notes, hundreds of historians over the 1990s answered the call to historicize the body. This is a shame because, if the new essay which replaces it is a good overview of work that has been done, the original essay should remain a point of reference for anyone interested not in the history of discourses about the body, but the histories of bodies themselves. Well worth buying and reading carefully, though for the above reason I would seriously consider looking rather for the older edition.

Although at times too abstract the book is a good discussion of historical writing. It is not an easy read but it is very rewarding. I was a better student of history after I read it.