Philosophy of History After Hayden White

Description

This anthology of new essays by an international group of preeminent scholars explores the ground-breaking work of Hayden White, whose thought, beginning with his seminal Metahistory (1973), has revolutionized the way we think about the philosophy of history, historiography, narrative, and the relation between history and literature. Representing a variety of disciplines and approaches, the contributions to this volume testify to the far-reaching effects and significance of White's philosophy of history. Individual essays relate White's ideas to contemporary art, cognitive studies, Heideggerian hermeneutics, experimental history, Kant's transcendental philosophy, analytic philosophy of history, Marxist cultural theory, the Kantian sublime, and American academic historiography. A substantial introduction by the editor traces the genesis of White's philosophy of history, situating it with respect to both the Anglo-American and Continental traditions. The volume also features a previously unpublished essay by White, which offers a concise overview of his later thought, and a "Comment" written specifically for this volume, in which White revisits the question of the philosophy of history.

Robert Doran is Associate Professor of French and Comparative Literature at the University of Rochester, USA. He is the author of The Theory of the Sublime from Longinus to Kant and the editor of The Fiction of Narrative: Essays on History, Literature, and Theory, 1957-2007, by Hayden White, and Mimesis and Theory, Essays on Literature and Criticism, 1953-2005, by Rene Girard.

Doran's clearly written and scholarly introductory essay to this volume nicely sketches White's intellectual debts and relationships to many of his progenitors and successors. * History and Theory * Hayden White's diagnosis of history as constructed narrative has wreaked permanent damage to traditional conceptions of history, philosophy, and narrative alike; it is no longer the moment simply to assess that damage, but rather to respond to it with new proposals and new creativity, something this extraordinarily stimulating collection does in exemplary fashion. -- Fredric Jameson, William A. Lane, Jr. Professor, Duke University, USA Hayden White's contribution to history and other humanistic disciplines is inestimable. The essays in this book mark a great step forward not only in the growing body of commentary on White but in the creative uses and adaptations of his work. -- Dominick LaCapra, Bowmar Professor of Humanistic Studies, Cornell University, USA This book is about two related subjects: the enigmas, paradoxes, contingencies, and contradictions inherent in any and all attempts to understand, come to grips with, and free ourselves from history; and the intellectual itinerary of Hayden White. I suggest that readers begin with White's eloquent and brief closing "Comment" before moving on to the shrewd and erudite reflections that precede it. -- Allan Megill, Professor of History and Thomas C. Sorensen Professor of Political and Social Thought, University of Virginia, USA; author of Historical Knowledge, Historical Error.