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The Great War in History

The Great War in History

The Great War in History

Debates and Controversies, 1914 to the Present
Jay Winter, Yale University, Connecticut
Antoine Prost, Université de Paris I
October 2005
Replaced By 9781108843164
Hardback
9780521850834

    Since the Armistice, a vast literature has been produced on the First World War and its repercussions. In this 2005 book, two leading historians from the United States and France have produced a fully comparative analysis of the ways in which this history has been written and interpreted. The book identifies three generations of historians, literary scholars, film directors and writers who have commented upon the war. Through a thematic structure, it assesses not only diplomatic and military studies but also the social and cultural interpretations of the Great War as seen primarily through the eyes of French, German and British writers. It provides a fascinating case study of the practice of history in the twentieth century and of the enduring importance of the national lens in shaping historical narrative. This interesting study will prove invaluable reading to scholars and students in history, war studies, European history and international relations.

    • A fully comparative analysis of the writing of the history of the First World War
    • Written together by a French and an American historian, both leading figures of the social and cultural history of the First World War
    • This study is interdisciplinary in its approach, addressing political, military, economic, social, and cultural historiographies

    Reviews & endorsements

    "...an outstanding historiographical study...the book is a very well written, well researched, and interesting study--a must read for advanced history students who are interested in a comparative analysis of World War I or preparing for comprehensive exams."
    -H-German

    "This is a book for historians, students, and serious buffs. It is as much about the nature of historical inquiry as it has evolved in twentieth century Britain, France, and Germany as it is about various interpretations of the meaning of war. This kind of comparative analysis over such a huge and varied literature is rare, perhaps unprecedented, and certainly welcome. A rich and fascinating book, it deserves a wide readership."
    -History: Review of New Books

    See more reviews

    Product details

    October 2005
    Adobe eBook Reader
    9780511126727
    0 pages
    0kg
    This ISBN is for an eBook version which is distributed on our behalf by a third party.

    Table of Contents

    • Preface
    • Introduction
    • 1. Three historiographical configurations
    • 2. Politicians and diplomats: why war and for what aims?
    • 3. Generals and ministers: who commanded and how?
    • 4. Soldiers: how did they wage war?
    • 5. Businessmen, industrialists and bankers: how was the economic war waged?
    • 6. Workers: did war prevent or provoke revolution?
    • 7. Civilians: how did they make war and survive it?
    • 8. Agents of memory: how did people live between remembrance and forgetting?
    • 9. The Great War in history
    • Bibliography
    • Index.
      Authors
    • Jay Winter , Yale University, Connecticut

      Jay Winter is Professor of History at Yale University. He is a specialist on the First World War and its impact on the 20th century. His numerous publications include Sites of Memory, Sites of Mourning: The Great War in European Cultural History (1996) and 1914–1918. The Great War and the Shaping of the 20th Century (1998).

    • Antoine Prost , Université de Paris I

      Antoine Prost is Professor of History at the Université de Paris I. He is the author and editor of several books, including Republican Identities in War and Peace, Representations of France in the 19th and 20th Centuries (2002) and The Emergence of European Trade Unionism (with Jean-Louis Robert and Chris Wrigley, 2004).