Postmodernism and History

by Willie Thompson

In this clear, jargon-free guide, Willie Thompson provides a concise introduction to postmodernist theory and its significant impact on the study of history. Although this is a hotly-debated topic, with much of the current literature being both polemical and inaccessible to the beginner, Thompson offers straightforward explanations of complex concepts and shows how the debates are relevant to students' own work.

Postmodernism and History:

- Considers the origins of postmodernism in both the ideas of poststructuralist thinkers, particularly Michel Foucault, and the political and cultural developments of the late 20th century
- Explores themes such as the treatment of historical evidence, problems of historical representation, feminist history, ethical judgements on past events, and the validity of metanarrative or long-term historical explanation
- Discusses critically the work of a number of current and recent practicing historians - including Joan Scott, Roy Porter, Patrick Joyce and James Vernon - who have used postmodernist ideas in their writing
- Enquires how far postmodern thought has been absorbed into mainstream historiography

Genres: History

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Willie Thompson was until his retirement Professor of Contemporary History at Glasgow Caledonian University. His books, published by Pluto Press, include The Good Old Cause: British Communism 1920-1991 (1992), What Happened to History? (2000) and Ideologies in the Age of Extremes: Liberalism, Conservatism, Communism, Fascism 1914-91 (2011).

Reviews

[Miss · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book might give you an acceptable idea of what postmodernism means to historiography but it is written from a very biased perspective which sometimes even gets into sarcastic modes where certain concepts get ridiculed.

[Noor Arif · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the most jargon-free introduction to postmodernism and history I have read, there were times where it was clear that a more solid understanding of the writer of discussion was necessary (eg. Foucault, White). Thompson does give some context about the ideas presented within the works of the writers he discusses, going so far as to provide a glossary of technical terms in the back, but it proved inadequate. I would suggest reading the chapter on Postmodernism in an introductory book about literary theory (eg. Peter Barry's Beginning Theory) before reading Postmodernism and History to combat this issue.

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thompson’s book on postmodernism and history is a well-written introduction to the subject, best suited to those unfamiliar with the concepts. The irony of being easy-to-read was not lost on the author when discussing postmodernism. The author explains its often techy relationship with history with aplomb.