History and Memory
Jacques Le Goff, Elizabeth (Trans.) Claman, Steven (Trans.) Rendal, Elizabeth Claman (Translator), Steven RandallBooks.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.
Overview
In this brilliant meditation on the varying conceptions of history, Jacques Le Goff, one of the leading members of the French "Annales" school, examines the oppositions between past and present, ancient and modern as well as the various continuities in the evolutions of the historical spirit. Clearly written, broad-ranging, and richly allusive, History and Memory is a provocative book that will inspire a better understanding of historical work and provide an overview of the "new history" that has revolutionized historical studies over the post half century. Le Goff has written a new preface for the English language edition, which examines recent trends in historiography.Synopsis
In this brillant meditation on conceptions of history, Le Goff traces the evolution of the historian's craft. Examining real and imagined oppositions between past and present, ancient and modern, oral and written history, History and Memory reveals the strands of continuity that have characterized historiography from ancient Mesopotamia to modern Europe.
Booknews
A leading member of the French "Annales" school argues that history is no more accurate or subjective than the human memory it is necessarily based on. The study, having gone through several French and Italian editions since 1977, is a major statement of "new history," and how it differs from, and evolved from, earlier theories. Le Goff provides a new preface for the English edition, noting recent trends. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Editorials
The Historian
Historiography has its fashions, and this is a clear and persuasive portrayal of a present trend away from the fraternization of history with philosophy, theology, literature and the history of the plastic arts, toward a flirtation with politics and the social sciences...A fine study.