Key research themes
1. How does the New History reinterpret the relationship between historical narrative, historiography, and the construction of public memory?
This research area investigates how New History challenges traditional historiographical methods by embracing narrative complexity, the role of the historian's subjectivity, and the integration of historical writing as an active participant in shaping collective memory and identity. It matters because it reframes history not as an objective recounting of facts but as a dynamic discourse reflecting changing societal and intellectual contexts, thus influencing public understanding and engagement with the past.
2. In what ways does New Historicism reconceptualize the role of literature and culture within their historical and ideological contexts?
This theme examines New Historicism’s approach to analyzing literary texts as interwoven with historical discourses, power structures, and ideological formations, emphasizing literature’s political function and its embeddedness in cultural contexts. It matters because it shifts literary studies from formalist or autonomous text readings to historicized readings that reveal how texts both shape and are shaped by their cultural and political environments.
3. What are the critical challenges and debates regarding the teaching and public dissemination of history in contexts of conflict and national identity?
This theme explores controversies about history education and public memory in politically charged and conflictual settings, focusing on how reinterpretations of history influence identity formation, reconciliation, and societal transformation. It matters because history education is a battleground for competing narratives that either reinforce conflict or open possibilities for peace, citizenship, and pluralism, reflecting broader societal struggles over collective memory and legitimacy.