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Friday, March 9, 2018

The Cemetery Plot

Filed under: General — m759 @ 7:20 pm

The New York Times  today on a philosopher of
history who reportedly died on Monday, March 5 —

“Perhaps White’s most controversial idea,
and one for which he was so often shunned
by his fellow historians, is that ‘all stories
are fictions,’ ” Robert Doran, a professor at
the University of Rochester … said by email.
"White held that while historical facts are
scientifically verifiable, stories are not.
Stories are made, not found in the historical data;
historical meaning is imposed on historical facts
by means of the choice of plot-type, and this choice
is inevitably ethical and political at bottom.

"This is what White called 'emplotment,' a term
he coined," Dr. Doran continued. "Even the most basic
beginning-middle-end structure of a story represents
an imposition: The historian chooses where to begin,
where to end, and what points are important in the middle.
There is no scientific test for 'historical significance.' "

From this  journal on Monday, White's reported date of death —

Plan 9  continues.

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