Personal History Essay

years ago in Leningrad…Sunday. February 18. Election day,” filling in the spontaneous details of how his wife “looked like a schoolteacher, meaning a bit of an old maid.” Dovlatov provides a self-referential example of his aesthetic additions to history in the narrator’s encounter with a sculptor. The sculptor’s piece, a statue of Lomonosov holding a globe, shows an impossibly detailed topography of the Americas, including specific mountain ranges, lakes, and

Oral history has been a vital source of historical and important information since the beginning of human interaction. Recordings and one on one interviews with someone who lived through a certain time period or particular event can often provide a substantial amount of information and evidences on a subject that one may be researching. Unfortunately oral history does has its flaws, and it does not always provide the best source of information. Often information from direct interviews and other forms

History and recollection are utilized in conjunction to provide a more comprehensive overview of the past. History is described as the formal documentation of an event whereas memory is understood to include more emotional personal recollections. The first visual representation explores this dynamic through a metaphor. The two images are positioned on separate pages of a book that demonstrates the juxtaposition between the two concepts, yet still enforces the idea that both elements work together

the past and to creating an ethical stance, history is needed, as a view from the outside, to scrutinize and verify the remembered events.” Assman presents memory and history as necessities. Moreover, she argues that memory and history act as checks on each other, maintaining a balanced perspective through their coexistence. Here, memory signifies something remembered from the past by an individual or group, considered an “inside” and inherently personal perspective. This insider element allows memory

information to be valid, balanced and lacking in bias. Whether intentionally or by mistake, bias has often found its way into historical accounts. McCullagh goes to great lengths to explain why this occurs; what type of biases are most common; and how personal and cultural bias can be overcome. McCullagh first asserts that there are four distinct ways in which bias affects historical accounts: misinterpretation of evidence, omission of important facts, the implication of facts that are known to be false

Objective ‘You have reckoned that history ought to judge the past and to instruct the contemporary world as to the future. The present attempt does not yield to that high office. It will merely tell you how it really was’ - Leopold Von Ranke ‘There are no facts, only interpretations’ – Nietzsche Here we encounter two diametrically opposed views concerning objectivity. It can be argued that “true” objectivity cannot exist, as history is more exposed to differing interpretations

is going on in the world and what may be happening within themselves” (Mills 1959). The reasoning behind this perspective is that all our actions are influenced by social institutions, which in themselves are created by individuals and shaped by history. Therefore, Mills suggests, that only through looking both inwards and outwards will people be able

In the novel “True History of the Kelly Gang” by Peter Carey and Lord Tennysons poem “Charge of the Light Brigade” both authors manipulate their textual form to crystallise the perception of an inextricable link that exists between history and memory. The texts use methodical, documented fact to anchor the work in historic authenticity whilst Carey uses imaginative speculation to shape personal representation of events and Tennyson adds a personal perspective, both demonstrating how a subjective

the past is articulated through the interplay between history and memory, which work to expose the elusive truths of the past, and exemplify the strength of humanity. Richard White, a historian, posits; “History is the enemy of memory...History forges weapons from what memory has forgotten or suppressed.” This definition postulates that there is an inevitable dichotomy between the accretion of factual evidence and the subjectivity of personal experience by shaping the collective past of humanity

as a means to appeal to the ordinary audience on a personal level, similar to Winter’s television series. As such, Ken Burns strays from objective written historical productions that “separates family histories from national history”, believing that he can convey a powerful display of the past that resonates with his audiences through empathy. In light of this, my investigation of the approaches of history also enquires into the purpose of history within the contemporary society and if Burn’s emotive