The Betty Behrens Seminar on Classics of Historiography
The Betty Behrens Seminar on Classics of Historiography offers a unique opportunity for students and scholars to reflect on some great historical works and engage in discussion with renowned experts.
As we know, a classic is recognized as such insofar as it retains its value as an intellectual and cognitive tool, helping us to gain an understanding of the past as well as the present from a particular cultural viewpoint. Classics still have the capacity to resonate and speak to us about current problems. They produce perspectives that are implicitly comparative and dynamic, thanks to the historical dimension passing through both them and us.
These considerations are even more relevant when we speak about the classics of historiography because the same historical dimension is present on several more levels. These classics challenge us to contemplate some historical problems which are only fully understood when properly contextualised. In the same way, even the classic itself can fruitfully produce its own intellectually provocative value only when read through the eyes of the present but interpreted with a historicist approach.
The seminar will endeavour to underline the importance of the classics of historiography for their relevant intellectual function in creating critical political thought.
The seminar will take place between the 31st of January and the 21st of February and will be composed of four weekly meetings. The charming and fresh atmosphere of the Richard Eden Suite in Clare Hall, West Court, Cambridge, will be the location for the discussions.
Each meeting is composed of two hours. The guest speaker will introduce the classic by talking for half an hour. After that, each participant may briefly express their understanding of the work by addressing some questions to the other participants and the guest speaker. In order to be ready for the dialogue, everyone might read some pages of the work under scrutiny. The selection of pages is chosen by the guest speaker and is downloadable from this webpage (look for the ‘Download the text here’ link).
Before each seminar meeting, the Clare Hall dining hall will be available for lunch. After each event, the participants will enjoy a further informal exchange of viewpoints over a glass of juice or wine.
There are a few posts available to guarantee the close dynamics of the discussion and the full involvement of the participants. Those interested can even apply for just one meeting. To attend the seminar, please register via Eventbrite.
For any queries, please contact Professor Davide Cadeddu, who is convening this seminar series, via davide.cadeddu@unimi.it
Information on each session
Seminar 1 – 31 January 2024
Amira K. Bennison (Professor in the History and Culture of the Maghrib, University of Cambridge, Magdalene College), Muqaddimah (1377) by Ibn Khaldun – Download the text here.
The complete volume is available through iDiscover: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9781400866090/html#contents
Seminar 2 – 7 February 2024
Robert Black (Professor Emeritus of Renaissance History, University of Leeds), History of Italy (1537-1540) by Francesco Guicciardini – Download the text here.
Seminar 3 – 14 February 2024
Paul Cartledge (Emeritus A.G. Leventis Professor of Greek Culture, University of Cambridge, Clare College), Histories (V c. BC) by Herodotus of Halicarnassus – Download the text here.
Seminar 4 – 21 February 2024
Karen O’Brien (Vice-Chancellor and Warden, Durham University), The History of England from the Accession of James I to that of the Brunswick Line (1763-1783) by Catherine Macaulay – Download the text here.
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