The Past and Present Society

Past and Present. Later History Author(s): Jacques Le Goff Reviewed work(s): Source: Past & Present, No. 100 (Aug., 1983), pp. 14-28 Published by: Oxford University Press on behalf of The Past and Present Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/650619 . Accessed: 16/09/2012 15:24
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and senior academic figure the most prestigious among our nonand did he Marxists, almostcertainly morebyhis presence contributhananyoneelse. out tionsto keep Past and Present of theghetto said much.Perhapshiscontriwe Morris havealready AboutJohn the from factthathe was farfrom derived butionto Past and Present academic.He had begunhis careerin politics claimed, a typical (he a with mixed feelings,to have recruited young Oxford Liberal, and to HaroldWilson,to Labour), and onlyturned research teaching in felt he after war.As a politician probably happiest theunstructhe than of turedand libertarian campaigns atmosphere theanti-nuclear sat and organization affiliations. in anyofhis moreformal Discipline drawnfrom classicalantiquity on gradually lightly him.As a scholar, Britaininto the middleages, he Roman and post-Roman through and often and sidewaysin a whirlof suggestive forwards swept on brilliant ideas, but his eyeswerealwaysfixed thewiderpublicfor wereaimedfarbeyond whichhe wrote.His mostambitious projects in him.One is therepublication Two ofthemsurvive theuniversity. a seriesof small volumesof Domesday Book, whichhas carriedon it Whatever has besince his death. The otheris Past and Present. and of before after the 1960, come,and whatever contribution others in it remains a real sensehis monument.

E. J. Hobsbawm

Hill Christopher R. H. Hilton

LATER HISTORY
TO A REGULAR READER OF PAST AND PRESENT SINCE ITS APPEARANCE

in 1952,the"breakthrough" 1958did notseemto marka signifiof is cant turning-point. Perhaps the impression due to two of my of In own limitations. the first place I knew nothing the personal of the members of the journal's Editorial Board. biographies had anyprejudice neverhaving Marxism, provided against Secondly, able to accepta publication I itwas open and undogmatic, was totally but of an in whichtherewas certainly element Marxism whichgave It of no impression beingsubjectto a dogma,stillless to a party. was it not untilafterthe eventand without considering to be of much (fromthe pointof view of the journal),thatI noticed, importance of the towards end ofthe1950s,thatthecloseassociation someBoard of or form Marxism withtheBritish witha particular either members Communist Partyhad been abandoned.It was not untillaterthatI

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discoveredthatlinks betweenthemand the partyhad ended as a of or resultof resignation expulsion.The disappearance thesubtitle was the onlyindication whichmade A Journalof Scientific History If a me ponderthematter. it was a questionofrenouncing dogmatic it Marxism whichset itself as theonlyscientific theory, wouldbe up of illusion.But I mustadmit a fortunate abandonment a dangerous froma hitherto thatI also fearedthatit mightsignala distancing an orientation whichrejected irrational an verypositiveorientation, to and history along approachto history whichwas concerned situate was quicklyassuagedby subsewiththesocial sciences.My anxiety of quent numbers the journal. as Perhaps I should say something to why I am not sure that on made a good choice when conferring me the Past and Present a task to but honourable formidable ofpresenting itsreaders rereadof of and a consideration itslastquarter a century, to be more or, ing exact, from1959 to 1982 inclusive.For one thingI am somewhat removedfromthe journalsince I have friendly, thoughregrettably withonly threemembersof the Editorial not veryclose, relations Board (twoofwhom,it is true,wereamongthefounding members) of On handI might and I knownothing itsinternal history. theother the an be too close, havingbeen a readerfrom beginning, admirer, lover.Howeverthere one is a friend, almost(ifI might so) a secret say me on which feature mayprovide witha specialperspective particular of studiesat the Past and Present. From thebeginning myhistorical to of end of the I940s I was converted the standpoint the French becamea co-director Annales from and, to mygreat journal pleasure, to avoid the temptation look at Past and 1969. I cannottherefore as Annales.I hope, however, that to Present, a certainextent, from I shall avoid the mistakeof reducingthis essay to a comparison in betweenthetwojournals.I mustonlywarnthereader, all sincermy practice, ity,thatmy pointof view will derivefrom customary As of Past and Preshereas elsewhere. co-director Annales, reading above all mypleasurethatthe ent,I am consciousof threefeelings: two journalsshould enjoyclose, even fraternal, then relationships; a concernthat we should keep our own separateindividualities; sometimes certainjealousyof our British a sisterjournal. finally, What, then, strikesme today,in spite of that "breakthrough" (whichI hardly noticed)in 1958, is thejournal'scontinuity. much to thiscontinuity, and contribute Individuals,necessarily, also the fact that the journal is still young - only thirty years withthemorethanfifty-year-old Annales. This meansthat compared are someofitsfounders stillon theBoard- R. H. Hilton,chairman, E. J.Hobsbawm,vice-chairman, whileChristopher Hill, as president of the Past and PresentSocietyis, in spite of a slightwithdrawal, is alwayspresent.No less important the factthatT. H. Astonhas

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been editorof the journal for twenty years,havingalreadybeen assistant editorforseveralyears. I will referagain to intellectual and scientific But I continuity. would like to stressthatthiscontinuity gonehand in hand with has a strengthening the journal. The Board has well perceivedthat of journalsand book series,need supscholarly including enterprises, base. The strength Annaleshas been of port,a sortof institutional its tie, since 1947, withthe SixthSectionof the Ecole Pratiquedes Hautes Etudes (since 1975 theEcole des Hautes Etudesen Sciences has However Sociales).Past andPresent nothad suchan opportunity. thatmaybe, Past and Present reasonably has in increased size. The mostimportant was from twoto three stagein growth thetransition numbersa year in 1962, then fromthreeto fourin 1969, thus often to achieving quarterly publication, thought be thebestperiodrather less than Ioo journals.After icityforthe major,established the journalthenoccasionally reachedmorethan200 and has pages, now settleddown to between i5o and 200 pages. It has kept the smallformat, samecover,thesamepresentathe same,very pleasant, tionand thesame typography. increase thenumber pages The in of has allowed the averagelength thearticles be increased of to somewhat(thoughtheyremainmostly ordinary of and the occalength) to sionalvery whilethenumber longcontribution be accommodated; and lengthof footnotes also remainedreasonable- thoughI has detecta tendency these to increase.The prevailing for impression and the remains,however,one of concisenessboth in the format of and thisseemsto me to express, some length thearticles perhaps, innatenationalcharacteristic, as Past and Present would explain or, and culturaltradition. it, a scholarly a Most important, Past and Present createdarounditself nethas and production, workof regular linkedwithit both activity closely and intellectually. practically of in There is first all thePast and PresentSociety, founded 1959, will whose constitution be foundon page 94 of issue No. 15 (April and 1959) of the journal.The namesof thepresident vice-president of the Societybegan to appear on the first insidepage towardsthe Hill leftthe EditorialBoard to end of the I96os whenChristopher which he still occupies. A vice-presidency take the presidency of the Societywas createdforJohnMorriswhen he handed over the of chairmanship the EditorialBoard in 1972 to R. H. Hilton,who stilloccupies it. After JohnMorris'sdeathin 1977, the vice-presidencydid notreappear.1
and 1Past andPresent an exceptional somewhat homageto Christopaid surprising at pher Hill in the issue of February1969 (No. 42). This was a reproduction, the of of Hill by Derek Hill, portrait Christopher beginning the numberof an official commissioned Balliol College (of whichhe had been electedMasterin 1965) and by was certainly in justified viewof this publishedin The Times.In a sense thisgesture
(cont.onp. 17)

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Thenthere theannualconferences, are in starting 1957andcontinuin ing without any breakssave foropen meetings 1968 and 1974, a in gap in 1958 and a postponement 1969. Thus therehave been in conferences all and two open meetings a seriesof on twenty-two discussionamongthe best thatI know. Let me topicsforhistorical list them: Revolutions 1957 Seventeenth-Century Revolution 1959 The Originsof theIndustrial to Cities,Courtsand Artists [fifteenth nineteenth centuries] I96O 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979
I980
1961 1958

War and Society, 1300-16o0

in and Nationalism Africa Colonialism and Europe History,Sociologyand Social Anthropology Workand Leisure in Pre-Industrial Society Social Mobility Popular Religion Literature and theHistorian R. C. Floud: Historians and theComputer (open meeting)

The Sense of thePast and History Conquestand Culture The Patronage Sciencein theNineteenth of Century in Communities British Immigrant History and Inheritance the Family Towns and EconomicGrowth Hill: From Lollardsto Levellers(open meeting) Christopher The Invention Tradition of The Roots of Sociobiology The Transmission Ideas in EarlyModernEurope,c. 1350of
1700

Law and Human Relations 1981 The EnglishRisingof 1381 Unrestin Britishand FrenchAfrica, British India 1982 Agrarian and French Indo-China in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries One could comment length thislist. I willconfine at on to myself a few remarks.Alreadyin 1966 a conference was held on "Popular Religion"whichwas to becomea choice and fashionable subjectin the 1970s. Then, in additionto thosetopicsof economy and society whichrevealthe sociologicalpredilections the journal,attention of is paid to thehistory culture:theplace of theartist history of in and
(n. I cont.)

finehistorian's workand personality, to speakof his rolein founding journal. not the for But the styleastonishes, it would almostseem to be one of thoserareoccasions whenone is led to speculatewhether Past and Present had ideas about slippinginto the establishment.

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theconfrontations thehistorian of withliterature, 1960and 1967. in The sociology sciencewas discussedin 1972and thetransmission of of ideas duringthreeand a halfcenturies European history of in I would like to draw attention two otherconferences to whose formulation and content I foundparticularly attractive. The first thatof 1970: "The Sense of thePast and History".The title is whathas becomeone of the current fashions expresses perfectly thehistory history of writing and thisis, in a sense,echoedin the titleof the journal. A luckytitle!It was indeed fortunate the that Communist and Marxistfounders the journalshouldhave taken of thename,without the establishing links,from Past and Present any Series.This serieswas publishedbytheCobbettPresswhichwas, in fact,close to the Communist Party.For me the titleagain evokes Annalesand in particularthe positiontaken by Marc Bloch, as ou d'historien. Good expressedin his Apologie pourl'histoire mitier for from present the history himwas made by thehistorian moving towardsthe past and in comingfrom past towards present. the the I Furthermore believethat,apartfrom to the title,the any loyalty constant concernof Past and Present's EditorialBoard has been the dialectic between twohorizons history: consideration the the of no of without historical no enclosure thepastintoitself, of present depth; so providing alibi forover-sensitive an historians escape from to the on present.To reflect the sense of thepast also meansaskingquestionsaboutthepsychological function collective of attitudes concernof between ing thepast. This impliesa clarification therelationship and one since history sociology, ofthejournal's majorpreoccupations itsfoundation. in raised Already February 1969H. R. Trevor-Roper theproblemin "The Past and the Present:History and Sociology" (No. 42), an articlemarkedby his usual suggestive talent,even if from spirit thejournal.Eric Hobsbawm's the of somewhat removed reply,"The Social Functionof thePast: Some Questions"(No. 55, and as May 1972), was one of his finest writings, reflected, against the of article, position Past and Present. Trevor-Roper's is conference thatof 1977, "The Invention of My otherfavourite Tradition". Here was a turn towardsthat othersisterscience of in history anthropology as well as an immediate recognition of but it from element, bringing forward anthropology thehistorical and themists time,from careful of immobility intemporality. Always in makingchoices, Past and Present has only publishedthe proor to Obgrammes some of the communications theseconferences. on viouslythe best will have been chosenand heavypressure space will have been avoided. Nevertheless one may long formore. So, thanquantity, Past choosingalwayson the basis of qualityrather and Present shuns special issues and rather debateson one prefers
1979.

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in text,spreadoverseveralissues,thananyconcentration one. Howcommunications have givenrise to separate ever, some conference such as the volumeeditedby PhilipAbramsand E. A. publication, in Towns Societies: and EssaysinEconomic Wrigley, History Historical the on whichfollowed 1975conference "Towns and EconSociology, omic Growth". This relativedispersalof articlesin the journaltogether withan collections has led the Past and Present inclination put together to the journal with other publications. EditorialBoard to reinforce in havefound their outlet thePastand Present Somevery longarticles six published thePastand Present by Supplements, Society, between and 1982, of whichfivehave been on British 1975 topics.Then in on 1965 appeared a volume of essays fromPast and Present the themeCrisisin Europe,156o-i66o, editedby T. H. Astonwithan introduction Christopher Hill, and this was followedby two by of anthologies the journal'sarticles.Then since 1976 the Past and PresentSocietyhas had a flourishing outletin theshape ofPast and Present Press. Publications, publishedby theCambridge University havebeenpublished: volumes someanthologUp toJune1983twelve ies ofarticles from journal,someoriginating paperspresented the in some original to the annual conferences, and monographs, one edia tionoftexts. The seriesprovides mostvaluablediversificationthe of and is also the occasionof valuableco-operation Society'sactivities betweenthe Societyand the Maison des Sciences de l'Homme in Paris. Finally let us mentionthe ShelbyCullom CenterforHistorical under Studies,opened in September1969 at Princeton University the still continuing directionof Lawrence Stone. This centre,in could seem like an offshoot American on spiteof its independence, of Past and Present.For Lawrence Stone, and university territory Institute AdvancedStudy,are still of J. H. Elliottat the Princeton members thejournal'sEditorial of Boardand have takento America of The centre'sseminar something the spiritof Past and Present. themes,from"Education and Society" in 1959 to "Charityand Welfare"for1984-6,could well be Past and Present subjects. whichguarantees journal presence the a and Beyondthisnetwork, an audiencebeyondits own confines, thereare otherindications of itscoherence and its vitalspirit. Past and Present a policyof printing has onlya veryselectchoice of reviewarticles, written orderto discusstheproblemposed by in the workunderreviewor to open up a debateon thesubject.Thus in No. 27 (April 1964) JoanThirsk,underthe title"The Family", reviewsthe research such Frenchhistorians Mandrou,Duby of as and Arieson the history the family, of the emphasizing differences between Franceand GreatBritain suggesting moreattention and that

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be paid "to the questionof class differences". the same number In A. G. Dickens reviews workby theHarvardhistorian H. Willia G. He the of ams, TheRadical Reformation. examines concept a "radical as reformation" applied to variousreligiousmovements (Anabapas tism,spiritualism, rationalism) opposedto the"magisevangelical terialreformation" the moderates of (Lutherans,Calvinists, Angliof the British cans) and regrets failure sixteenth-century specialists and synthetic in to engagein a comparative studyof Protestantism Reformation of Europe. Kare D. T6nnesson(University Oslo) reviews a work by Richard Cobb, Les armiesrevolutionnaires, and thathis interesting studyis based moreon "impressionistic regrets rather thansystematic analysis".Againin No. 27 Henry techniques K. and Working Classes Pellinganalyses S. Inglis'swork,Churches the in Victorian whichfacesthehistorian England,and posestheproblem in answering question:whenis a man"underreligious the influence" and whennot?He hopesthata "religious ofpastsocieties sociology" of and could be constructed careful "by comparison environmental otherfactors". Review articlesof books sent to the journaldo not constitute a of There is a drastic selection certain significant of its contents. part but ones works, goodor bad, they preferably ofimportance; whether to to a problems be posedand methods be discussed. provide basisfor features The smallnumberof reviewslinksup withthe external few articles mostly of ofthejournal- smallformat, average length, All readeran diagramsor illustrations. thisconveysto the foreign In of impression "puritanism" byno meansunattractive. anycase the choice has been made: qualityratherthan quantity, examples thanarticles a detailed, of and case studiesrather bulkyor exhaustive its of nature.In thisway the journalasserts personality an effort by of for will.But does itlose somebreadth view,materials comparative ones? Are perspective? its choicestheright or The way in which Past and Present, wilfully not, expresses is concerned showsup in as faras historical production selectivity all aspectsof the journal'sworkand is certainly impressive. Past and Present sparing(thoughless is Justconsiderobituaries. so than Annales)and in this distancesitselffromthe customsof traditional journals.They are only printedso as to commemorate or to or Board members friends, historians whomthe journalfeels or close, whethercollaborators not. We may mentionin the first RichardPares (1961), R. R. Betts(1961), A. H. M. Jones category (1970), JohnMorris(1977), Philip Abrams(1982). In the second, E. (1959), FedericoChabod(1960), mainly foreigners, A. Kosminsky VicensVives(I960), R. H. Tawney(1962), Lefebvre Georges (I960), Delio Cantimori (1966), H. K. Takahashi(1983). The styleofPast of is and Present to be foundin thebrief obituary GeorgesLefebvre

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in April I960 (to be followedby an unusuallylong articleon him by Richard Cobb in Novemberof the same year). The obituary in emphasizeswhat it was that the journal appreciated Lefebvre, his fromhis republicanism his radicalism, methodological apart he certainpioneeringbooks. Thus, firstly, was "the orientation, of founder independent and in inspirer a newtendency socialhistory: the studyof thecommonpeople and its movements 'from below'". Ratherthanhis greatsyntheses, is his Les paysans nord it du pendant la Revolution Francaiseand his La GrandPeur de 1789 whichare singledout. Is it notas ifone put Marc Bloch's Les roisthaumaturges de rurale before caracteres Les or originaux l'histoire franqaise La societed Not thatthechoiceis bad, whatever value of thewhole the frodale? corpusof theworkof thesetwohistorians. Between 1959 and 1982 variousjournalshave advertised Past in Does thisimplyanyaffinities and Present. between them?One must affinities beingtheonlycriterion. any not be cautious,intellectual In case I havenotdoneanydeep research thisquestion.Nevertheless on I noticethepresenceof a loyalfriend, not Annales, to speakof such as The Studies, Journal Contemporary journals TheJournal British of of is and especiallythose where history in close association History, with othersocial sciences,such as The Economic Review, History and and Studiesin Society History TheEuropean Journal Comparative Then thereare journalsdevotedto regionsdominated ofSociology. du suchas Cahiers monde russe sovie'tique, et cultures, byother Annuario de estudios and America latina. And of course thereare medievales those journalswhose ideologicalpositionis close to that of Past and Present, such as History especiallythe earlyPast and Present, A Journal SocialistHistorians A (now subtitled Journal Workshop: of and Review Historians) TheRadical History ofSocialistand Feminist in in (note,forexamplethelatter's specialnumber 1979,"Sexuality History"). At thispointI would like to emphasizethatPast and Present has nothesitated protest to on of and strongly behalf humanrights press freedom at least two occasions. In May 1974 R. H. Hilton and on T. H. Astonspokeoutagainst fate historians Czechoslovakia the of in withsomeof whomthejournalhad had a specialrelationship ("Historians Czechoslovakia", in No. 63). In November1977R. H. Hilton threats censorship of whichhad beenmadein India spokeup against withrespect certain to historical (No. 77). writings To return theprevioustheme, is surprising an advertiseto it that mentappearedfora non-specialist Frenchjournalengagedin highlevel popularization, rather fashion Paris, yetdevoting in in much and space to history thesocial sciences.This is Le ddbat wordand (a a practicefavoured Past and Present), whichpublishedan article by about Past and Present's Marxistorigins and a translation the of Stone-Hobsbawm "The Revivalof Narrative". debateconcerning

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In orderto completemysurvey thelifeand personality this of of about the numberof journalI ought to be able to say something the number copies sold and financial of situsubscribers, print-run, of that ation.I am ignorant thesematters, I have theimpression but in are things wellmanagedand thatthereare no big problems these respects. I intendto end thisarticleby considering journal'sscientific the its and intellectual and of personality, direction thefocus itsinterests. BeforedoingthisI wouldlike to offer readers results a rough the of whichI havemade ofall articles calculation between published 1959 are and 1982 inclusive.These figures concerned withthe historical locationsconcerned.As to period,I periodsand the geographical about prehistory a journal in (almostnothing distinguish: antiquity whose birth-pangs were presided over by Gordon Childe!); the middleages; the earlymodernperiod(sixteenth eighteenth to centuries,to 1815); the nineteenth century(to 1914); the twentieth The geographical divisions are: GreatBritainand Ireland; century. theCommonwealth; Africa;NorthAmerica(U.S.A.); Latin America; Asia; and Europe.2 Here aretheapproximate figures. period:antiquity, percent; By 4 middleages, 47'9 per cent;nineteenth per cent;earlymodern, 18"2 century, percent;twentieth century, percent.By geographi7"4 22"4 Britainand cal area: Great Ireland,46-5 per cent; Commonwealth, 2-6 per cent; Africa, per cent; NorthAmerica(U.S.A.), 19 2"4 per cent; Latin America,2-8 per cent;Asia, 3-7 per cent; Europe, 37'7 per cent. on whichI There are about a dozen articles general methodology, area countedin withthegeographical group.Theyconstitute per 2"4 cent. are Even withsomecorrections theseresults clear.As faras period to concernthe sixteenth is concerned,the overwhelming majority number medievaltopics. of thena respectable nineteenth centuries, have been somewhat But antiquity and the twentieth negcentury the special to lected. This divisioncertainly reflects, some extent, some of of interests the members the EditorialBoard; nevertheless generalpointscan be made. in I findnothing placed on theearlymodern surprising thestress and new perception period and the middle ages: a new historical of haveappearedin thestudy thisepoch.On theother methods hand, therelatively littleattention paid to the ancientworldand above all It is but to thetwentieth century notmerely surprising paradoxical.
2 There is an elementof here as a resultof the difficulty placing of imprecision certainarticles defined in twiceifit categories. Generally speakingI countan article coverstwo periodsor twogeographical areas.

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has is as ifPast and Present clipped the tipsof bothits wings.One as in mightsuppose thatin GreatBritain, in France,traditionalism in theuniversities thestudyofancienthistory mayhaveblockedthe way foran openingof the subject in the journal. But this hardly and anthropology have been outappliestoday.Historicalsociology of successfulin the investigation the ancientworld(in standingly France, with Louis Gernet,J. P. Vernant,P. Vidal-Naquet,M. Detienne,Nicole Loraux, F. Hartog,and others).Strangely enough, and editor one volume M. of although Finley(authorof twoarticles withPast and of collected essaysfortheSociety)has been associated Is this has the Present, association been somewhat exception. thisnot an area whichcould be developed? I suppose theremusthave been somehang-up thepartofPast on as and Present'sfounders a resultof a conflict betweentheirold to loyaltiesand theirwish, fromthe verybeginning, produce an journal,and thatthismay have hinderedthe developundogmatic mentof the area of contemporary "Revolution"has been a history. in Past and Present, but chiefly Englishand the the regulartopic French Revolutions,very littleabout the Russian Revolutionof the 1917. HoweverI think 1917,or indeedabout SovietRussia after Annaleshas been reproached real problemlies elsewhere. too, quite in for interested contemporary and, justifiably, notbeingsufficiently in particular, post-warhistory. in There is some excuse for this, which that is difficult establish method "good" contemporit a is to for Historians caughtbetween are aryhistory. ethnologists, sociologists, torn betweenthe inaccessibility and journalists, of politicologists some of the archivesand the overwhelming abundance of other of sources,notto speak of beingbaffled a history whoseoutcome by theyare ignorant.So theyare pushed back into writing political, and of out-of-date narrative military diplomatic history a hopelessly methodsfroman unsound base; type; or into using quantitative or using vague conceptslike "public opinion" or otherformsof And yetmuch is at stake. If we do not make a fresh subjectivism. of on history our own times,appropriate, theone hand,forwhatit is and whatit offers the historian, conforming, the other to but on sees as history, will not accomplish we hand, to whatthe historian our dutyas historians thereciprocal of enlightenment thepresent by the past and of the past by the present.Perhapsthisis a theme whichrepresentatives fromsome of the world'shistorical journals discusstogether. might As faras geographical I spreadis concerned, am mostsurprised, not only by the space devotedto Europe but in particular the to British Isles. Yet the statedintention partially realized,but very bothbythefounders subsequently in of and partially terms quantity, by theEditorialBoard- was to exploretheworld'sotherhistorical

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and has formations cultures. Something beendonebutlesseventhan appears. The Britishbias also appears in the choice of authors.I admitat thispointthatmy investigations have been less than here precise,since I have includedwithBritishauthorsthoseof all the Anglo-Saxoncountries, includingthe United States. The factremainsthatas faras I can see therehave been onlyabout 28 foreign authors an of during years, average one a year.This smallnumber 24 may be divided as follows:7 French, 6 Indians and Sinhalese,4 Brazilians,3 Czechoslovaks,2 Poles, I German,I Argentinian, I advisers" Belgian,I Israeli,I Peruvian.The exampleofthe"foreign seems typical.They bore witnessto the journal'sinternationalist in the intentions including ThirdWorld- butdisappeared 1964. I do notwantto make too muchof this.Annales had theidea of too network foreign of advisers and supporters, setting an "official" up did are whichhad to be abandoned- it simply notwork.But there It otherwaysin whichone can open up a journalto otherhistories. the seemthatI am beingungracious (sinceI havebeenoffered might to on proudand perilousopportunity writeone of thetwotexts the to to first numbers) deplorea lackofopening foreigners. ninety-nine withpriorclaims, But thatis not theproblem.There are foreigners and cultures. Past andPresent thosefrom non-European non-western has been bold enough to promotethese claims. However thereis suitableauthors.This maybe thenthegreatproblemof identifying All of theheart thematter butitis another story. thesame,looking itself. and authors, problem a of at thepercentages articles presents fieldnot endanger Would a greater openingto thiswiderhistorical an essentialcoherence- the journal's British,Anglo-Saxonand Europeanbase? of Finally,as faras thebasic orientation thejournalis concerned, I wishto repeathow much I admiretheway in whichtheEditorial Board is able to pass a messageand set its stampin veryfewwords by meansof the sectionsfor"Comments"and "EditorialNotes" at theend of some issues. Let me givesomeexamples. Hill In No. I8 (NovemberI960) RodneyHiltonand Christopher ConInternational criticism theEleventh of but telling made a short tendedto be over gressof HistoricalSciences: the "contributions to simplified the point of platitude"; the congresswas too highly for was little so meetings; opportunity informal organized thatthere was and the Britishcontingent therewere too many participants; unrepresentative. the Hill recommended In No. 69 (November 1975) Christopher directedby Kevin Brownlowand AndrewMollo, filmWinstanley, people in notingthat "this filmcan tell us more about ordinary thana scoreof textbooks". England seventeenth-century intoa seriesof further has Past and Present also ventured special-

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field.Thus in December1968 ized areaswhichenlargethehistorical at meeting Oxford (No. 41) the Societygave noticeof theinaugural of the Group forthe Studyof the Historyof the BritishClimate, organizedby T. H. Aston. In NovemberI975 (No. 69) therewas a Medical Informathe availablefrom Historians' noteon theservices tionbureauat WadhamCollege, Oxford. a Hill contributed noteon In No. 88 (August I980) Christopher an articleon demographic history Miranda Chaytorin History by No. io (Autumn 1980), pp. 25-60, and in four lines Workshop, are "If its indicated relevance: MirandaChaytor's findings confirmed will from othersources,a greatdeal of rethinking have to be done, about the prevalenceof the nuclear family, about methodology, the and about the conceptualframework underlying work of the CambridgeGroup". In No. 98 (February1983) R. H. Hilton,in a noteon theactivity withsomehumour, d'Etude du F6odalisme, oftheSoci6t6 remarked, of exclusion theword on thevirtual fodalismein theFrenchuniversiof The obituary RichardPares overtones. tiesbecause of its Marxist which appeared in November 1961 (No. 20) recalledthatin The on Business made a savageattack Toynbeeand thenon he Historian's Jung. In February 1972(No. 54) LawrenceStonepraisedEdwardShort"ProfesA and Computer: Practical er's TheHistorian the Guide,saying much blood, sweat, sor Shorter'sbook will save many historians tearsand folly".Howeverin his article"The Revivalof Narrative" from has history fallen grace. (No. 85, November1979) quantitative mostof the papers In No. 24 (April 1963), after sharply criticizing where to on to history presented a symposium "Approaches History" of the universal was subdividedinto social history, history, history us Lawrence Stone reminded of and so forth, art,politicalhistory a towards thedangers specialization, of aspiration stressing legitimate studies "It a totalhistory: would be a sad day forEnglishhistorical wereallowedto carveout departmental if all thesespecial interests is withchanges History concerned empiresforthemselves. teaching and environsocial organization physical in men's mentalattitudes, ment,and specialization aspectmakesimpossible upon a particular Since historians for the totalhistory whichwe should be striving. must limittheirfieldof researchsomehow,it is vitally important to on shouldcontinue concentrate a particular thatthemajority place makegood thanon a particular and periodrather subject.Specialists but servants, bad masters". In November1961 (No. 20) therewas a notewhichrepeatedthe workin nonof objectives the journal:to publish"serioushistorical different Past are technical things somewhat language"(in practice for and and shouldnotbe a journal popularization) andPresent cannot

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to "widenthe somewhat narrow of horizon traditional historical also communication cooperation and bestudies"; "to makeserious tween of . historians different ideological allegiances . . possible". It reminded ofitsrecord a certain with us amount self-satisfaction: of "We havestimulated discussion. havebroken We downbarriers". And although journal the stated that"we havealways preferred and to articles theoretical and discus'example fact' 'methodological articles these on have been sions' some important topics published. ", a About dozenarticles general on with methodology, together the themes theannual of another for conferences, provide angle defining thejournal's can five I general scope.3 personally identify principal between and 1982. characteristics 1959 indicated the titles articles to of by (I) The wish- often a historical rather presentchunk history. then a of exemplify problem to articles possible focus a as the of (2) A concern makeas many debate. Hencethose debates terminated a rejoinder from frequent by the original author:"Robin Hood"; "Trevor-Roper's 'General Crisis' "Presbyterians, and "; Independents Puritans"; "Quantitative "The of FacesofMoral EconAnalysis theLongParliament"; Many in and "Science, Florence"; omy";"Heresy Medieval Renaissance Politics and Religion";"Agrarian Class Structure Economic and in we E. Development Pre-Industrial Europe"(where find Le Roy Ladurie others and ideas Brenfacing tothesuggestive ofRobert up Crisis or ner);"The Seventeenth-Century inNewSpain:Myth Reality";andso forth. of much (3) The primacy socialhistory andofa socialhistory informed sociology, hencetheimportant ofPhilipAbrams role by until premature his death. of from below"and consequently (4) The investigation "history an alliance other with that socialscience, In anthropology.Nos. 15 names the 1958)and I6 (November (April 1959)appear well-known in of E. R. Leach ("Hydraulic and Society Ceylon") Jack Goody,
Keith Thomas, "Historyand Anthropology", No. 24 (Apr. 1963), wherethe authorof Religionand theDecline of Magic shows the influence him (which I on can confirm myself) Evans-Pritchard's for of address "Anthropology History" and re(Manchester1961); "History,Sociologyand Social Anthropology" (conference A port),No. 27 (Apr. 1964); SidneyPollard,"EconomicHistory: ScienceofSociety?", No. 30 (Apr. 1965); "Social Mobility" (conference report),No. 32 (Dec. 1965); H. R. Trevor-Roper, "The Past and the Present:Historyand Sociology",No. 42 (Feb. 1969); C. D. Darlington,"The Geneticsof Society", No. 43 (May 1969); RandolphStarn,"Historiansand 'Crisis'", No. 52 (Aug. 1971); PhilipAbramsand David J. Rothman, "Sociologyand History",No. 52 (Aug. 1971); E. J. Hobsbawm, "The Social Functionof the Past: Some Questions", No. 55 (May 1972); Philip Abrams,"The Sense of the Past and the Originsof Sociology",No. 55 (May 1972); FormsofDurkheim",No. 95 (May 1982);thepolemic John Bossy,"Some Elementary on startedby Lawrence Stone, "The Revivalof Narrative:Reflections a New Old History",No. 85 (Nov. 1979), withrepliesby E. J. Hobsbawm,"The Revivalof Narrative:Some Comments",No. 86 (Feb. 1980) and Philip Abrams,"History, Sociology,HistoricalSociology",No. 87 (May 1980).

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board("Indo-EuropeanSociety"). whowouldlaterjoin theeditorial in was probablythe arrival 1970 of The main eventin thiscontext historians withstrong KeithThomas,one ofthefirst anthropological to been noted. whosecontribution thejournalhas already interests, (5) An interestin culture and education, includingfirst-class of articleson the history the universities (above all of Oxfordand T. H. Aston).It seemstome thatbeyond by Cambridge, principally as in and schooling topicsin themselves, there thisinterest education is a conviction schooland university an apprenticeship the are to that thatthis particular craftof citizenship.It is fromthis conviction of from the attention thehistory schoolsand universities to springs, middle ages until the nineteenth century, especiallyin England, whereinstruction instrument theformain appearsas theprincipal tionof a democracy, itself based on "enlightenment". This maybe one ofthedeeperreasonsfortheBritish coreofthejournal, medieval and earlymodern. turn As I havesaid,I see no important inthedirection thejournal of since 1959; indeed thatpointeven seemsto marktherealization of whatPast and Present bothwas and stroveto be, moreor less conthatis a journalfreeof dogmatism, sciouslysince its foundation, even duringits Marxistperiod. Yet thiscontinuity does not seem to me to be an "immobilism". in There are, perhaps, shiftswhich could be illustrated a closer thanI havehad thetimetomake. A basicchangecouldhave analysis happenedif the thesispropoundedby Laurence Stonein his "The Revival of Narrative"(No. 85, November 1979) had become the credo of the journal.Withoutgoingintodetail I would like to say was had what,frankly, myreaction.I mustadmitthatifthearticle not been signedby LawrenceStoneI wouldnot have regarded as it of much interest.Stone's irritation, sharedby manyof us, at the infantilism excessesof some of the self-styled and of partisans the "new history" certainly is One also needs to be aware of justified. and in extent, Past andPresent, gapsin this"new history", toa certain withregardto contemporary or history politicalhistory though I would rather theappearance whatPhilipAbrams see of personally havecalled"an historical thana return "politito might politicology" cal history". But to payattention certain to movements thehistorin ical world (and in the world of the consumers history), of "new" movements with "reactionary" labels ("revivalof the event", "revival of narrative", "revivalof politicalhistory")hardlylead to a transformed In I historiography. thismatter am on the side of Eric Hobsbawmand Philip Abrams. If it is a questionof the need to keep to historical narrative for pedagogicalreasons(foryoungpeople and the generalpublic), my answeris yes. And also because it is worth keepingas a stagein the

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of to since, contrary what some people development the historian narrative think,a good historical presupposesthatmanyproblems have been posed alreadyand possiblyresolved.I am interested in a conceptualized history (Veyne, Furet) whichmightderivefrom of Tocqueville, Marx, Max Weber. I believe in the importance Michel Foucault's ideas for a renewalof the epistemology the of historical sciences.But ifit is a questionofabandoning "thebig why answeris no. And as forhistorians "forced questions",my feeling back upon the principalof indeterminacy", it is a question of if determinism about a singlelineardevelopment avoidinga dogmatic of all societies a pretension or thathistory be "scientific" the can in Marxistsense; if it is a questionof recognizing history, in chance, a of thenyes. But ifit is a question pluralism, diversity approaches, of reopeningthe way to irrationality, say no. The rationality I of be a posteriori, but it hazardous,fragmentary, history diverse, may exists.If thiswere not the case I personally would prefer write to detective stories. I wonderwhether what is reallybehind these vibrations which LawrenceStonehas takenso seriously maynotbe a searchfora new mood, whichis soughtin thepast becauseit cannotbe foundin the historians who (likethe present in an alliancewiththosenostalgic old imigris 1815) have "learnednothing of and forgotten nothing". historian shouldcall on us All the same, it is good thatan excellent to questionourselvesand it is rightthatthiscall should appear in Past and Present, onlybecause of LawrenceStone'splace in the not journalbut because debate mustbeginwithourselves.This is the to tradition thejournal,an appeal to thehistorian heror his duty, of a involves whichis to reflect; dutywhichafter curiosity disquietof an intellectual moralself-questioning and thedirection concerning in theprofession itsplace in society, societies, thehistorian's and for is speciality thesenseof thepast at theheartof thepresent. Ecole desHautesEtudesen JacquesLe Goff SciencesSociales, Paris