The Archive and the Historian

READING GROUP — THE ARCHIVE AND THE HISTORIAN

building-7368457-l.jpeg

Coordinated by Jorge Flores

The epistemological perspectives on the archive, understood as a reality but also as a metaphor, have undergone remarkable transformations in recent years. We no longer see it merely as a reasonably immutable space where historians obtain the necessary raw material to carry out their work. Alternatively, the archive became a subject, an agent of the historical process as important as those who shaped it. The archival turn led us to the idea of the archive as a document in itself, with a history that is important to explore per se. Research has advanced considerably in recent times, mainly by the hand of historians, archivists and anthropologists, all of them interested in the role of information and bureaucracy in their relationship with power and society (philosophers had been among the first to deal with the subject). The colonial archive, in particular, has been at the center of the debate. In any case, the “new history” of the archive is still a somewhat Eurocentric narrative, paying little attention to the ways in which documents were generated, stored and organized in the “rest of the world”.

The purpose of this reading group is precisely to question the archive, reflecting on its history over the last half millennium, as well as the way in which its relationship with the historian has evolved over the last half century. The session program and the list of proposed readings seek to address some of the issues that mark the present historiographical debate, including the terms of our relationship with the archive in the face of the challenges ahead. The group will meet, preferably in person, about twice a month between February and June 2022. Participation in the group requires prior registration via email sent to the respective coordinator (jmflores@fc.ul.pt). The texts for discussion will be sent by email to all registrants at least one week before the next session. The discussion will take place in Portuguese or English, depending on the composition of the group.

pt en