About "The Untimely Past" website
t h e / u n t i m e l y / p a s t
about this site ...
"As I read the situation, 'we historians' thrive
on our own mistaken identity .... We take far too much
for granted. It is commonly asserted we are historians,
not philosophers; we write history, not fiction. But these
oppositions carry within themselves the seeds of our own
deconstruction. If we examine them carefully, it is no
longer clear where the boundaries lie between our discipline
and others, between us and others. And if this is the nature
of the identity crisis which poststructuralism provokes among
those who consider its implications for the study of the past,
perhaps the task before us is that of reconstructing our
disciplinary self, so that 'we' may thrive once again."
[1]
The Untimely Past is an attempt to contribute to
the project suggested in the above passage. It is first and foremost an
on-line bibliography. The objective is to compile as complete a set
of English-language entries as is possible relating to the intersection of
historiographic practice with poststructuralism, postmodernism, and
allied areas of theory/practice. This is, of course, a literally
endless task. As of this writing I am still (yes, still) very
much in the middle of the initial posting of the citations I have compiled
to this point. But new entries will be posted on a regular basis, and,
time allowing, I will add supplementary descriptive notes and hyperlinked
cross-references to the basic bibliographic citations whenever possible.
A few random notes to help you find your way about: At present,
contributions to edited collections are listed with the book, under the
name of the editor; I will break them out under the individual authors as
soon as I can get to it. Everything published in 1999 or 2000 is on the "New and Forthcoming" page, but also listed in its appropriate (as best I can
determine) thematic list. Don't assume every citation for an author will
be grouped together on one list; some have been split up topically. Also,
there are certainly citations in the "General Bibliography" that could,
and should be put on a more specific list. In general, be prepared to
roam around a bit. The "Find" feature on your browsers is probably your
best tool when looking for something specific.
A final plea. If you see huge gaping blind spots in the coverage
that show no sign of closing up as time goes by, let me know
(especially if you might be interested in contributing citations to
plug up such holes). Your help will be most appreciated.
This site was established in September 1996,
and is maintained by Jeffrey Hearn.
E-mail: jeffreyhearn@compuserve.com
Snail mail: The Untimely Past, P.O. Box 11285, Takoma Park, MD
20913-1285
the quotation at the top of the page is from
Jeffrey Hearn, "Poststructuralism and the Study of the Past: An Introduction in Spite of Itself."
The Maryland Historian 24:1 (Spring/Summer 1993), 7.
© Copyright 1999-2004, Jeffrey Hearn