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HHhH by Laurent Binet (English Translation by Sam Taylor, 2012)
By Emily Ward In the beginning of his historical novel, Laurent Binet warns the reader with a quote from Osip Mandelstam, “Once again, the writer stains the tree of History with his thoughts”. Yet, despite commencing his book with this ominous forewarning, Binet leaps straight into the fray to attempt to combine the composition of…
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Five Do’s and Don’ts for Using Digital Newspapers
By Nathaniel Zelinsky Nathaniel Zelinsky is an MPhil student in Historical Studies at the University of Cambridge. Digitized newspaper databases are an increasingly popular resource for young students of history. It is easy to understand their appeal to the “Google” generation: from the comfort of your own bedroom, you can access countless primary sources without…
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Cultural Memory and the Finnish Civil War
by Tiia Sahrakorpi “Why are Finnish people constantly discussing World War II?” The Second World War is brought up by many elderly Finns in interviews concerning Russia’s actions today in relation to Finland. World War II still forms an important part of Finnish cultural memory and self-identification. However, the Finnish Civil War of 1918 does not have…
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Period dramas and historical accuracy: “Mad Men”
by Florence Largillière As the first part of the last season of Mad Men comes to an end, it seemed a good opportunity to reflect on my interest for period dramas and historical fictions. For an historian, watching period TV shows and films can sometimes be irritating. Even though I know that they are not…
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Shadows of the First World War: Surveillance, Censorship, and the Right to Privacy
doinghistoryinpublic.org 