Shaping History
Shaping History
Featuring extraordinary personal accounts, this book provides a unique window through which to examine some of the great political changes of our time, and reveals both the potential and the challenge of narrating the political world. Molly Andrews' novel analysis of the relationship between history and biography presents in-depth case studies of four different countries, offers insights into controversial issues such as the explosion of patriotism in post -9/11 USA; East Germans' ambivalent reactions to the fall of the Berlin Wall; the pressures on victims to tell certain kinds of stories while testifying before South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission; and the lifelong commitment to fight for social justice in England. Each of the case studies explores the implicit political worldviews which individuals impart through the stories they tell about their lives, as well as the wider social and political context which makes some stories more 'tell-able' than others.
- Accessible study of the relationship between political change and personal stories, with references to academic literature, music, poetry and other forms of cultural expression
- Contains original case study material drawn from some of the great political events of our times, based on extensive in-depth interviews
- Features cross cultural and narrative research which will interest readers from across the social sciences
Awards
Outstanding Book Award, Narrative and Research SIG of the American Education Research Association
Reviews & endorsements
"This is an inspiring book. It seamlessly weaves together theory in political science, psychology and sociology with the human stories, gathered in in-depth interviews, of people deeply engaged in important historical conditions and events. The concerns of the interviews range from identity, to commitment to causes and the moral meaning of actions. This is an important scholarly book that is a pleasure to read."
- Ervin Staub, author of The Roots of Evil: The Origins of Genocide and Other Group Violence (Cambridge, 1992) and The Psychology of Good and Evil: Why Children, Adults, and Groups Help and Harm Others (Cambridge, 2003)
"A very good application and extension of narrative theory, Shaping History is a wonderful addition to any qualitative methods course. Andrews’s writing is personable, clear, and free of jargon.... She succeeds very well in outlining the advantages and pitfalls of this type of research by discussing the development of her own techniques over the years. As theorizing and researching emotions is the latest fad in social movement research, I suspect (and hope) we will see more political ethnographies in the near future. Scholars will do well to mind Andrews’s observations on how best to encourage activists to tell their stories. - Canadian Journal of Sociology
Product details
August 2007Hardback
9780521843652
234 pages
235 × 160 × 15 mm
0.508kg
Available
Table of Contents
- 1. History, biography and political narratives
- 2. Reflections on listening
- 3. England: stories of inspiration
- 4. The United States: narratives of patriotism
- 5. East Germany: the contested story
- 6. South Africa: told and untold stories
- 7. Questions and endings.
