The past in a changing present -- History as reconstruction/construction -- History as deconstruction -- What is wrong with deconstructionist history? -- What is wrong with reconstructionist/constructionist history? -- Michel Foucault and history -- Hayden White and deconstructionist history
Summary
Detailing both empiricist and deconstruction issues and considering the arguments of both schools, Munslow debates the position that not only is history defined as the textual product of historians but also that narrative may provide the textual model for the past itself. An examination of the character of historical evidence and an exploration of the role of historians as well as a discussion of the failure of traditional historical models is included. Munslow maps the controversies involved in and assesses the merits of the deconstructionist position, arguing that instead of beginning with past events themselves, history begins with representations of the past
