History and Society

Abstract

The Historian and SocietyThe word “history” carries two meanings. The first refers to a set of events that occurred in the past, while the second indicates the way in which these events are narrated. This duality of meaning certainly has consequences for the historical process, which currently faces challenges in terms of the nature of history as a discipline and as a methodology. What does it mean to be a historian in the present? Is there even a need to study history? Is history a mere register of past events that it aims to preserve from oblivion, or does it have more important objectives? Can historians overcome constructed and inherited narratives – and if so, how? How ought societies to experience their history? What images do they preserve from their past and into their present, and how do these relate to the historical profession?