Metahistory by Hayden White
The Historical Imagination in Nineteenth-Century Europe
This influential work explores the nature of historical writing, arguing that historical narratives are not merely objective recountings of past events but are shaped by the historian's literary style and ideological perspective. It examines how different narrative structures, such as romance, tragedy, comedy, and satire, influence the interpretation of historical events, suggesting that history is as much a product of the historian's imagination as it is of factual evidence. By analyzing the works of prominent 19th-century historians, the text challenges the notion of history as a purely empirical discipline, highlighting the creative and subjective elements inherent in the construction of historical knowledge.
- Published
- 1973
- Nationality
- American
- Length
- Moderate
- Pages
- 448
- Original Language
- English
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- Alternate Titles
- None
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