How Can We Seize the Past?

Philosophy ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 64 (247) ◽  
pp. 67-78
Author(s):  
Christopher Cherry
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of History ◽  
Direct Access ◽  
Perceptual Awareness ◽  
Historical Events ◽  
The Real ◽  
The Past ◽  
Direct Acquaintance ◽  
Real People ◽  
Intelligible World ◽  
Historical Past

My concern is to understand how it is that contemplation of the past— better, of this or that preferred past—evokes in some people an impression which is distinctively weird. It is unmistakable; and anyone who has felt it will soon know what I am talking about. What is the impression, and whence the impressionability?To help identify my concern (and make it seem less eccentric) I shall let it emerge from some highly selective remarks about an issue in philosophy of history which is, by contrast, familiar and respectable: the debate between constructionists and realists. We cannot conceivably have direct acquaintance with, direct access to, the past; by their very nature, past events are over and done with and so unavailable for inspection. This much both camps agree on. However, they differ massively over what follows from this truth. For the constructionist concludes that what he calls the ‘real past’, what actually happened, can play no part whatsoever in historical thought. It is necessarily hidden, and we can have no inkling of it. What, and all, the historian can sensibly claim to know is the ‘historical past’, something which is constituted by and exists only in relation to his thought. Against this, the realist maintains that of course historians do not, necessarily or even typically, constitute the past; rather, they construct accounts of it which will be true if they conform to it as it actually was and false if they do not. And he charges his opponent with a number of fundamental confusions: mistaking accounts of historical events for the events themselves, confusing epistemological matters with ontological, and worst of all equating knowledge with direct perceptual awareness. Now, the realist is, in basics at least, fairly obviously right. And his criticisms are reinforced when we note that constructionists tend to combine with their vision of the impenetrability of the ‘real’ past the thesis that we undoubtedly know that there is a real past, with real people and real events. However, this piece of knowledge must for him, like that of an intelligible world for Kant, ever remain contentless, ‘factually vacuous’.

scholarly journals Inventing the Past, Re-Writing the Present

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 61-72
Author(s):  
Jurgita Staniškytė
Keyword(s):  
Current Understanding ◽  
Historical Events ◽  
The Past ◽  
Hybrid Approaches ◽  
Reality Effect ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Baltic ◽  
Historical Past

In recent years an increasing number of performances on the Baltic theatre stage attempt to escape the dominant understanding of “performing history” as a repetition or reinforcement of the monumental representations of the historical past or as a (re)production of “mythistory” (Joseph Mali). Lithuanian creators of performances about history increasingly choose hybrid approaches of representation, merging memorialization and critique, imagination and fact, documents and speculative inventions as forms of engagement with the past. This playful re-imagination of the historical past serves as a creative laboratory, where audience ability to recognize and/or resist historical manipulations as well as to embrace plural and polyphonic nature of memory are tested. In some cases, however, Lithuanian theatre creators are interested in “truthful” or “authentic” representations of personal memories, rather than a performative investigation ofmechanisms of production of the “reality effect” in historiography and their impact on audience perception. This article examines the ways in which historical events are represented on the contemporary Lithuanian theatre stage and, at the same time, addresses the larger issues around the implications of particular theatricalstagings of the past on the current understanding of the subject of history.

scholarly journals Repetition: Thinking Between G.W. F. Hegel’s Philosophy of History (1837) and Karl Marx’s The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte (1852)

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (54) ◽  
pp. 81-97
Author(s):  
Antonis Balasopoulos ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Philosophy Of History ◽  
Historical Events ◽  
The Past ◽  
Major Complications ◽  
Gravitational Pull ◽  
Exit Strategies ◽  
Revolution Counter

Taking its cue from the untimely paradoxes manifesting themselves in some of the most visible instances of Hegel’s and Marx’s reception in the twentieth century, this essay proceeds to explore the ground between the two thinkers with particular reference to their philosophico-historical grasp of repetition. After a number of preliminary observations on the ideological subtext involved in Marx’s reference to Hegel in the Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte and the temporality their intertextual conjuncture stages, I focus on four major complications that attend the comparison of Hegelian and Marxian notions of repetition, as well as on their correlation to the historical events of Revolution, Counter-Revolution and Restoration. I conclude with some reflections on the “exit strategies” Marx and Hegel adopt vis-à-vis the specter of iteration as a sign of submission to the gravitational pull of the past upon the present and future.

scholarly journals Artistic Modelling of History in the Literature and Non-Fiction of a Post-Totalitarian Society

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1Sup1) ◽  
pp. 228-237
Author(s):  
Yuliia Laskava ◽  
Volodymyr Bondarenko ◽  
Olena Shulga ◽  
Mykola Stasyk ◽  
Olga Stadnichenko
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Historical Time ◽  
Next Generation ◽  
Historical Events ◽  
Postmodern Literature ◽  
The Past ◽  
Non Fiction ◽  
Artistic Interpretation ◽  
The One ◽  
Historical Past

An artistic interpretation of historical facts is quite relevant in the literature and non-fiction of a post-totalitarian society. Prose works on historical themes are valuable and interesting in that they create an illusion for readers to be present in a certain period of historical time, and it is the artistic modeling of events that makes priceless facts of history completely disappear. The historical past is an inexhaustible material that word artists have been referring to for centuries, creating the best examples of fiction. Prose texts of historical subjects are perceived by each next generation in a new way, historical events and phenomena are interpreted from different angles, the activities of famous figures of the past are widely covered. Non-fiction literature is a kind of literature that is on the verge of artistry and documentary. The main non-fiction genres are a diary, autobiography, biography, memoirs, confession, letters, etc. On the one hand, non-fiction literature claims to recognize the author’s subjective truth about him in her texts; on the other hand, only the reader can either, demonstrating full confidence in the author, call this text documentary, or admit the presence of poetry and aesthetics in the work and tilt the scales in the direction of artistry. The material for observation and research of the phenomenon of artistic modeling are works that allow us to trace the most common, in our opinion, models of correlation of historical and artistic consciousness in postmodern literature and non-fiction of a post-totalitarian society.

What’s Forgotten About The Structure of Scientific Revolutions?

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 323-339
Author(s):  
Jouni-Matti Kuukkanen
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
History Of Science ◽  
Historical Record ◽  
Philosophy Of History ◽  
First Century ◽  
Historical Events ◽  
Scientific Revolutions ◽  
The Past ◽  
Structure Of Scientific Revolutions ◽  
History Of

Abstract Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is a classic, and it is certainly not forgotten. However, an essential aspect about it has been neglected. That is, Kuhn’s Structure is a book in philosophy of history in the sense that Structure attempts gives an account of historical events, focuses on the whole of the history of science and stipulates a structure of the history of science to explain historical events. Kuhn’s book and its contribution to the debates about the progress of science and the contingency and inevitability of the history of science shows why and how philosophy of history is relevant for the history and philosophy of science. Its successful integration of historical and philosophical aspects in one account makes it worthwhile reading also for philosophers of history in the twentieth-first century. In particular, it raises the question whether the historical record can justify philosophical views and comprehensive syntheses of the past.

scholarly journals The Belief in the Existence of a Real Man: Eugenic Myth and its Consequences

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-189
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Gurczyńska-Sady
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Medical Procedures ◽  
The Past ◽  
Sperm Bank ◽  
Real People ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Way Of Thinking ◽  
Historical Past

The first half of the 20th century witnessed the development of the classic eugenics. Some countries in Europe and the USA of different historical past, cultures and degree of development were universally attracted by the eugenic ideology. This raises few questions concerning the basis of its universal attractiveness for masses and its success. This article answers those questions indicating strong religious-like belief in the myth which served as a base for the eugenical way of thinking being older than this thought. This myth narrates a story about the existence of “real people” who lived in the past, yet unfavourable circumstances caused their degradation, but who—with the assistance of physicians technocrats of the new society and through medical procedures—may be reborn. This paper aims at the reconstruction of the myth on the basis of the writings of Plato, Campanella and Nietzsche. As examples of its “realization” of the myth, I provide the activities of the institutions like Lebensborn houses in Germany and Nobel Sperm Bank in the USA.

Inventing the Past, Reimagining the Future: Remembrance of Irish History in Aisteach

2020 ◽  
pp. 75-102
Author(s):  
Timothy Diovanni
Keyword(s):  
Future Generations ◽  
Cultural Inheritance ◽  
The Real ◽  
Irish History ◽  
Avant Garde ◽  
The Past ◽  
Invented Tradition ◽  
History Of ◽  
Compositional History ◽  
Historical Past

In January 2015, Jennifer Walshe, a contemporary Irish composer, in collaboration with a handful of Irish artists, musicians, and composers, published Aisteach, a fictional history of an Irish avant-garde. The contemporary artists invented an ‘archive’ of Irish avant-gardists, who allegedly lived in the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries, writing their histories and composing works attributed to them. The creators then built a website that includes articles on the imaginary artists, recordings of their works, and images of their art, among other resources. Aisteach continues to expand as more people contribute to it; the most recent exhibition, which occurred in Sligo, Ireland in September 2018, introduced more imaginary artists into Irish history. Including many female and LGBTQ figures, Aisteach constructs a more diverse and inclusive history of Irish art and music that in turn casts a new light both on the real historical past and the present musical and political scenes. Through this invented tradition, the Aisteach creators also evoke alternative memories that fill in gaps in their nation’s compositional history, enable future generations of artists in Ireland, and work through their cultural inheritance to reshape and, in some cases, reaffirm conceptions of Irishness.

Richard Sisson and Leo E. Rose. War and Secession: Pakistan, India and the Creation of Bangladesh. New Delhi: Vistaar Publications. 1990. 338 pp.Price Rs 225.00 (Hardbound).

1991 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-99
Author(s):  
Ziaul Haque
Keyword(s):  
Political Polarization ◽  
The Political ◽  
New Delhi ◽  
Historical Events ◽  
National Elections ◽  
The Real ◽  
Global Issues ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
Political Events ◽  
The Creation

After thirteen long years of military dictatorship, national elections on the basis of adult franchise were held in Pakistan in December 1970. The Awami League, led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and the Pakistan Peoples Party, under Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, emerged as the two majority political parties in East Pakistan and West Pakistan respectively. The political party commanding a majority in one wing of the country had almost no following in the other. This ended in a political and constitutional deadlock, since this split mandate and political exclusiveness gradually led to the parting of ways and political polarization. Power was not transferred to the majority party (that is, the Awami League) within the legally prescribed time; instead, in the wake of the political/ constitutional crisis, a civil war broke out in East Pakistan which soon led to an open war between India and Pakistan in December 1971. This ultimately resulted in the dismemberment of Pakistan, and in the creation of Bangladesh as a sovereign country. The book under review is a political study of the causes and consequences of this crisis and the war, based on a reconstruction of the real facts, historical events, political processes and developments. It candidly recapitulates the respective roles of the political elites (both of India and Pakistan), their leaders and governments, and assesses their perceptions of the real situation. It is an absorbing narrative of almost thirteen months, from 7 December, 1970, when elections were held in Pakistan, to 17 December, 1971 when the war ended after the Pakistani army's surrender to the Indian army in Dhaka (on December 16, 1971). The authors, who are trained political scientists, give fresh interpretations of these historical events and processes and relate them to the broader regional and global issues, thus assessing the crisis in a broader perspective. This change of perspective enhances our understanding of the problems the authors discuss. Their focus on the problems under discussion is sharp, cogent, enlightening, and circumspect, whether or not the reader agrees with their conclusions. The grasp of the source material is masterly; their narration of fast-moving political events is superbly anchored in their scientific methodology and political philosophy.

Russian and Soviet historiography of the life and work of Anatoly Fedorovich Koni in the 20th century

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 (11-1) ◽  
pp. 263-279
Author(s):  
Alexander Kodintsev ◽  
Danil Rybin
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Systematic Study ◽  
The Real ◽  
The Past ◽  
Soviet Historiography

The study analyzes historical researches on the life and work of the outstanding Russian lawyer A. F. Koni. It is noted that several directions in the study of the personality of this figure can be distinguished. It is concluded that systematic study of the legacy of Koni in the context of the era, taking into account the accumulated knowledge, coupled with archival materials will recreate the real face of the remarkable humanist figure of Russia in the past era.

Yury Nagibin and shadows of the Niernsee House

2020 ◽  
pp. 42-60
Author(s):  
S. N. Liutova ◽  
I. I. Dronova
Keyword(s):  
Life Story ◽  
Manufacturing Plant ◽  
The Real ◽  
Best Friend ◽  
Real People ◽  
State Archives ◽  
First Time

The article reveals the names of the prototypes of certain characters in Nagibin’s long story My Golden Mother-in-Law [Moya zolotaya tyoshcha] (the mother-in-law being A. Likhachyova, the wife of the director of the Moscow Car Manufacturing Plant ZIL). For the first time we read the names and learn about the destiny of M. and L. Kostromin, the real people behind the characters of Matvey Matveevich, the neighbour, and Nina Petrovna, the female protagonist’s best friend. The life story of these personalities, residents of the legendary Niernsee House in Bolshoy Gnezdnikovsky Lane, enables the authors, who are related to L. Kostromina, to explain the underpinnings of the relationships between the prototypes of Nagibin’s characters, often a mystery for the writer himself, and share first-hand accounts that confirm his amazing flair for imagination. The article uses materials of family lore, the authors’ private archive (letters and photographs), as well as hitherto unsearched materials from state archives.

THE 2017 AMENDMENTS TO THE LAW REFORM (MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE) ACT 1976: A MILESTONE OR A STONE’S THROW IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF MALAYSIAN FAMILY LAW?

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 449-479
Author(s):  
Sridevi Thambapillay
Keyword(s):  
Child Custody ◽  
Family Law ◽  
Law Reform ◽  
The Real ◽  
The Past ◽  
Marriage And Divorce ◽  
Conversion To Islam ◽  
Family Issues ◽  
The Law ◽  
Muslim Family

The Law Reform (Marriage and Divorce) Act 1976 (LRA) which was passed in 1976 and came into force on 1st March 1982, standardized the laws concerning non-Muslim family matters. Many family issues concerning non-Muslim have emerged ever since, the most important being the effects of unilateral conversion to Islam by one of the parties to the marriage. There has been a lot of public hue and cry for amendments to be made to the LRA. After much deliberation, the Malaysian Parliament finally passed the amendments to the LRA in October 2017, which came into force in December 2018. Although the amendments have addressed selected family law issues, the most important amendment on child custody in a unilateral conversion to Islam was dropped from the Bill at the last minute. Howsoever, at the end of the day, the real question that needs to be addressed is whether the amendments have resolved the major issues that have arisen over the past four decades? Hence, the purpose of this article is as follows: first, to examine the brief background to the passing of the LRA, secondly, to analyse the 2017 amendments, thirdly, to identify the weaknesses that still exist in the LRA, and finally, to suggest recommendations to overcome these weaknesses by comparing the Malaysian position with the Singaporean position. In conclusion, it is submitted that despite the recent amendments to the LRA, much needs to be done to overcome all the remaining issues that have still not been addressed.

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