In this section we will list, describe, and define terms that are commonly used or might profitably be used in discussions of history or films about history and that may provide useful lenses through which to view our subject.  Please suggest other terms to include here.

Emplotment:

As defined in the structuralist theories of Hayden White in Metahistory, emplotment is the tendency of historical documents to enact certain cultural ideas (plots) at the expense of historical accuracy.  Textual representations of history, from primary sources (e.g. Herodotus) to secondary, tertiary, and other derivative works (e.g. historical novels, textbooks, anecdotal history) are consequently not “retellings” of the same set of historical events but a complex strata of cultural perceptions in which the original event (“what really happened”) may be lost.

Consider a modern textbook’s discussion of the American Revolution.  Not only is there a tendency on the part of the textbook to enact contemporary “plots” (comedy, romance, satire, and tragedy)—to see the American Revolution as, by virtue of its military success, an unqualified resolution to extant social and political problems (as per a comedy in which the resolution of the principal conflict engenders a resolution of secondary dilemmas)—there is also a tendency of the primary sources (letters and documents written at the time of the Revolution) to enact other plots.  A letter written by a Revolutionary soldier at Valley Forge might enact a “tragic” plot, systematically including and excluding details to the effect that the story of a noble army facing insurmountable odds is produced.  Consequently, every “layer” of historical representation (primary sources, secondary sources, etc.) carries with it a set of cultural expectations from which the history itself cannot be divorced.

See sound bites: 273, 284

Related topics:  Ideology, History as Text.

History as Text:

As distinct from history as a set of objective historical events, “history as text” refers to retellings of actual events in a particular medium (e.g. a history textbook, a historical movie or novel, a verbal, oral or religious history).  This is of ultimate importance because textual representations of events are not the events themselves: they are subject to significant (and even intentional) omissions, biases, and miscellaneous lapses in accuracy.  Moreover, several sets of literary theories suggest that these distortions are of a greater extent and magnitude than modern readers suspect.

For example, theories on the misrepresentation of history (as a consequence of its textual existence) generally assume that historical narratives are shaped by a dominant political or social discourse.  A Feminist historical analysis, for example, would look for areas in which a historical text assumes, promotes, explains, or participates in the systematic subjugation of the female to the male.  Likewise, Marxist historical analysis focuses on the role of economic systems in the construction of historical narratives, generally assuming a cultural apparatus (ultimately defined by economic relationships) is self-promoting at the expense of objectivity.  In a similar fashion, a Postcolonial analysis of history considers the role that colonization (and its corollary economic and racial systems) plays in determining exactly how (and why) an event is recorded.

Related Topics:  Emplotment, Ideology.

Ideology:

As defined by Louis Althusser, Ideology is the property of a society or culture which supposes, and systematically promotes, certain ways of interpreting relationships between social elements.  This is primarily the type of cultural logic that supposes relationships at the level of “of course” or in the guise of “common sense,” e.g., a railroad strike might be blamed on greedy executives in a certain culture or subculture because (“of course”) workers only strike if they are treated unfairly.  Of course, Ideological beliefs are generally not rationally consistent and can often be self-contradicting or insoluble (e.g., “Money doesn’t buy happiness, but I’m unhappy because I don’t have enough money”).

While it is not necessary that all members of a culture participate in a specific Ideology, all cultures and subcultures are partly defined by the Ideologies they inevitably participate in and actively promote—the latter through Ideological State Apparatuses: institutions or devices which promote a specific set of Ideological assumptions (e.g. schools, television shows, printed media).  These institutions “enforce” Ideology by promoting certain cultural and social practices through systems of subtle and complex rewards and punishments— e.g., movies: greedy and selfish businessmen are routed by a noble coalition of politicians, lawyers, and petty criminals; children out-think adults; animals are more insightful than people.

See sound bites: 190, 216, 247, 338, 463

Related topics:  Emplotment, History-as-Text.

Privileged Visibility:

Homi Bhabha is a contemporary literary theorist, and his phrase "privileged visibility" -- though perhaps taken out of his context -- is nicely useful. The stuff of the past is enormous.   We know that history is not the past, but what we remember about the past -- and perhaps even more specifically, what we choose to remember about the past.  So, certain elements of the past are given "privileged visibility" in our histories.  The term reminds us that history is a selection of the past, that history is constructed.  And therefore the term reminds us to ask who is granting the privilege, why, and what is left invisible.  Even as a relatively new nation, our history is huge, and the number of films about it still relatively small.  Only a relatively few episodes have privileged visibility.  And, in a sense, we are their product.

See sound bite: 44