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Postmodernism for Historians
Postmodernism is an essential approach to History. This is the first dedicated primer on postmodernism for the historian. It offers a step-by-step guide to postmodern theory, includes a guide to how historians have applied the theory, and provides a review of why its critics are wrong. In simple and clear language, it takes the reader through the chain of theory that developed in the 20th century to become now, in the early 21st century, the leading stimulant of new forms of research in History. With separate chapters on The Sign, The Discourse, Post/Structuralism, The Text, The Self, and Morality, this book will encourage a new critical awareness of Theory when reading books of History, and when writing essays and dissertations. Armed with the principal ideas of Saussure, Barthes, Foucault, and Derrida, the historians can formulate how to combine empirical History with the excitement of fresh perspectives and new skills, merged in the new moral impetus of the postmodern condition. Designed for the beginner this is the essential postmodern starting point.
208 pages, Paperback
First published December 22, 2004
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37 people want to read
About the author
Callum G. Brown
22 books5 followersProfessor of Religious and Cultural History at the University of Dundee. He researches in the history of community ritual, personal memory and secularisation.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 16, 2024
Read for uni. Confusing - but so is postmodernism lol.
October 21, 2012
Apparently I'm a postmodernist?
This is a nice and straightforward book that explains a subject that is almost never presented in a straightforward manner. There's a huge amount of misunderstanding and misperception about postmodernism out there, and this is a good way to get a handle on it before moving into the actual postmodern texts. It's not a particularly thrilling read, and if you're not a historian/history student I'd imagine you'd find it pretty boring. But you're not the audience for this book! For history students out there, I'd recommend it for its clarity if nothing else. I also appreciate that Brown puts a chapter at the end on criticism of postmodernism, despite his obvious appreciation for the approach.
PS: I absolutely love that the book description here claims that it's written in order to "to empower those frightened by postmodern theory and the very idea of it." Haha!
This is a nice and straightforward book that explains a subject that is almost never presented in a straightforward manner. There's a huge amount of misunderstanding and misperception about postmodernism out there, and this is a good way to get a handle on it before moving into the actual postmodern texts. It's not a particularly thrilling read, and if you're not a historian/history student I'd imagine you'd find it pretty boring. But you're not the audience for this book! For history students out there, I'd recommend it for its clarity if nothing else. I also appreciate that Brown puts a chapter at the end on criticism of postmodernism, despite his obvious appreciation for the approach.
PS: I absolutely love that the book description here claims that it's written in order to "to empower those frightened by postmodern theory and the very idea of it." Haha!
April 5, 2021
The P-38 can opener of postmodern historical texts. Recommended for any librarian who has to catalog inscrutably theoretical books.
Readers also enjoyed "The Cuban Missile Crisis", according to Goodreads.
How did they know? I enjoyed the first 5 minutes of the Cuban Missile Crisis, because I thought my daddy had come home early from work to play with me.
(The rest of the day, not so much. My father said "Turn on the set." As Kennedy was speaking on the small black and white screen, it quickly became clear there was a reason all the scientists were sent home early from the defense lab. The adults really didn't know what was going to happen. Even the smart adults with PhDs at the lab weren't sure what you are supposed to do if the world is about to end. So they thought it best to send everyone home to spend time with their families.)
If you have a long academic career ahead of you, endless days to fill as an undergrad, or are really, really bored in retirement, perhaps you will enjoy converting plain English descriptions into obtuse, Latinate jargon. For me, I still prefer phrases like "the social values of the day," "a cultural leitmotif', "let us examine the philosophical underpinnings and moral implications of the terminology we are using in our analysis," "this group was often arbitrarily assigned personal characteristics which may have reflected individual or social prejudices, rather than the demonstrable or quantifiable characteristics of members of the group."
However, if you want tenure or need to impress a dissertation committee, you probably can't write like that anymore!
You will benefit greatly from adopting the inscrutably abstract manner of expression so ably laid out in this clear and articulate primer.
Readers also enjoyed "The Cuban Missile Crisis", according to Goodreads.
How did they know? I enjoyed the first 5 minutes of the Cuban Missile Crisis, because I thought my daddy had come home early from work to play with me.
(The rest of the day, not so much. My father said "Turn on the set." As Kennedy was speaking on the small black and white screen, it quickly became clear there was a reason all the scientists were sent home early from the defense lab. The adults really didn't know what was going to happen. Even the smart adults with PhDs at the lab weren't sure what you are supposed to do if the world is about to end. So they thought it best to send everyone home to spend time with their families.)
If you have a long academic career ahead of you, endless days to fill as an undergrad, or are really, really bored in retirement, perhaps you will enjoy converting plain English descriptions into obtuse, Latinate jargon. For me, I still prefer phrases like "the social values of the day," "a cultural leitmotif', "let us examine the philosophical underpinnings and moral implications of the terminology we are using in our analysis," "this group was often arbitrarily assigned personal characteristics which may have reflected individual or social prejudices, rather than the demonstrable or quantifiable characteristics of members of the group."
However, if you want tenure or need to impress a dissertation committee, you probably can't write like that anymore!
You will benefit greatly from adopting the inscrutably abstract manner of expression so ably laid out in this clear and articulate primer.
June 9, 2024
A very helpful introduction to some needlessly abstruse (although fascinating) ideas. Has a nice glossary, and the author often clearly demonstrates applications of the numerous theories.
March 30, 2025
Great at making postmodernism easy to understand.
February 7, 2008
It's on postmodernism...enough said.
April 22, 2009
The writing style of the author made it accessible and easy to follow, but I just don't like the subject matter.
March 8, 2011
Informative enough to get you through a historiography class, but painful for those who haven't drank punch of post-modernism.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews