But yeah, he's just talking about that stupid new book of his... And trying to lecture other people on the dangers of forgetting history! Arrogant bastard. D:
Ugh. I know. Isn't he one of the highest paid historians in the US? (Oh have you seen the letter exchange between him and Norman Hampson? Its hillarious. Hampson basically says, well...you'd get your facts right if you CARED about the subject...)
Probably. (No, I haven't. Is it online? Ordinarily, I don't hold Hampson in such high esteem either--or any historian who thinks it appropriate to refer to Saint-Just as Lucifer--but he's right here. As Vovelle says, one has to love the Revolution to understand it.)
I just wanted to tell you I have been reading parts of your journal for the past few days and I've really enjoyed it! You write on such interesting matters! It seems like you've had such a broad education in the most important things, and I was surprised to realise that you are in fact younger than me and still I think in school, although it seems you have a very detailed knowledge of things for that.
I studied the French Revolution last year in university for a whole term just devoted to it, yet that only revealed the tip of the iceberg, and I did mainly the beginning with the constitutional monarchy and then the napoleonic years and not much of the 1790s, so this year studying the 18th century I revisited it to do an essay on the Terror. But I was just floundering about really.. even my tutor didn't have much constructive thing to say about it (my first tutor dismissed it as uninteresting)
But I digress, I mean to say, I found many astonishing and new things, not to mention your refreshing views about Simon Schama, whom everyone really loves over here (aka Perfidious Albion as you call) and also your translations of French are really great - how is your French so good? Mine is awful. I found a pamphlet from 1795 about the Jacobins aux Enfers and I was so slow reading it even though it was quite interesting. I'm sure you've come across this one!
What else, what else.. er.. yeah, I've been to lectures by Blanning (another historian you mention) as well and I do find some of his claims dubious. I am more knowledgeable on the 17th century France, but he has odd things to say about that too. My idea of him is that he writes these really broad sweeping history theses that have lots of mistakes, although everyone always recommends his Class War or Culture Clash
Anyway sorry really long post but I just wanted to be like.. I mean, you said your journal was boring inthe description but it's really not! It's great! I am definitely going to take some of your recommendations for reading about the Terror and Robespierre, because.. I suspect a lot of what I've read is quite strange I mean. Have you read Penser la Revolution Francaise by Furet? He has .. I didn't really understand what he meant in his Robespierre section.. It seemed he was describing him as some kind of magical prophet. but. anyway.
Keep up the good work,
A well-meaning historian who may or may not have a livejournal of which he is too ashamed
P.S. please write back about your school, because - it seems really different to mine! - so envious!
I must admit, I am quite flattered by your high opinion of me and of my journal--though I am not certain I entirely deserve it. I'm merely a student of the Revolution whose strong political beliefs and unwillingness to swallow propaganda have made eager to find out the truth about the Revolution and its historians and then share it with, really, anyone who will listen.
Translating is one of the ways I can best achieve that. When one has spent over a 1000 hours in French classes, as I have--and probably at least twice that many outside of class--it's not hard to be a competant translator. Even given all that, I still can't speak as well as I would like.
I've read excerpts of Penser la Révolution; I don't think I would have the stomach to make it through the whole thing. Nearly all of Furet's premises are absurd, because they come from an unwillingness to consider context, from the desire to superimpose 20th century politics onto the 18th century, and from the hypocritical recycling of old counterrevolutionary rants passed off as something new. Schama, less cleverly and more luridly, does essentially the same thing.
As for my school, I don't have much to say about it, unless you have any more specific questions....
Again, I'm glad you've been enjoying my journal, and please feel free to keep reading and commenting--that's what it's there for!
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regna
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(no subject)
Date: Tuesday, 23 June 2009 22:22 (UTC)You have no idea how much that one sentence makes me want to vomit.
What is he talking about, out of curiosity? Hopefully that recent book of his dealing with America and not something dear to our hearts?
(no subject)
Date: Tuesday, 23 June 2009 22:31 (UTC)But yeah, he's just talking about that stupid new book of his... And trying to lecture other people on the dangers of forgetting history! Arrogant bastard. D:
(no subject)
Date: Wednesday, 24 June 2009 00:20 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Wednesday, 24 June 2009 05:32 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Thursday, 25 June 2009 02:38 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Thursday, 25 June 2009 04:35 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Friday, 26 June 2009 01:04 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Friday, 26 June 2009 07:29 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Friday, 26 June 2009 14:24 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Friday, 26 June 2009 21:19 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Friday, 26 June 2009 19:18 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Friday, 26 June 2009 21:20 (UTC)(no subject)
Date: Saturday, 27 June 2009 01:28 (UTC)I just wanted to tell you I have been reading parts of your journal for the past few days and I've really enjoyed it! You write on such interesting matters! It seems like you've had such a broad education in the most important things, and I was surprised to realise that you are in fact younger than me and still I think in school, although it seems you have a very detailed knowledge of things for that.
I studied the French Revolution last year in university for a whole term just devoted to it, yet that only revealed the tip of the iceberg, and I did mainly the beginning with the constitutional monarchy and then the napoleonic years and not much of the 1790s, so this year studying the 18th century I revisited it to do an essay on the Terror. But I was just floundering about really.. even my tutor didn't have much constructive thing to say about it (my first tutor dismissed it as uninteresting)
But I digress, I mean to say, I found many astonishing and new things, not to mention your refreshing views about Simon Schama, whom everyone really loves over here (aka Perfidious Albion as you call) and also your translations of French are really great - how is your French so good? Mine is awful. I found a pamphlet from 1795 about the Jacobins aux Enfers and I was so slow reading it even though it was quite interesting. I'm sure you've come across this one!
What else, what else.. er.. yeah, I've been to lectures by Blanning (another historian you mention) as well and I do find some of his claims dubious. I am more knowledgeable on the 17th century France, but he has odd things to say about that too. My idea of him is that he writes these really broad sweeping history theses that have lots of mistakes, although everyone always recommends his Class War or Culture Clash
Anyway sorry really long post but I just wanted to be like.. I mean, you said your journal was boring inthe description but it's really not! It's great! I am definitely going to take some of your recommendations for reading about the Terror and Robespierre, because.. I suspect a lot of what I've read is quite strange
I mean. Have you read Penser la Revolution Francaise by Furet? He has .. I didn't really understand what he meant in his Robespierre section.. It seemed he was describing him as some kind of magical prophet. but. anyway.
Keep up the good work,
A well-meaning historian
who may or may not have a livejournal
of which he is too ashamed
P.S. please write back about your school, because - it seems really different to mine! - so envious!
(no subject)
Date: Monday, 29 June 2009 07:24 (UTC)I must admit, I am quite flattered by your high opinion of me and of my journal--though I am not certain I entirely deserve it. I'm merely a student of the Revolution whose strong political beliefs and unwillingness to swallow propaganda have made eager to find out the truth about the Revolution and its historians and then share it with, really, anyone who will listen.
Translating is one of the ways I can best achieve that. When one has spent over a 1000 hours in French classes, as I have--and probably at least twice that many outside of class--it's not hard to be a competant translator. Even given all that, I still can't speak as well as I would like.
I've read excerpts of Penser la Révolution; I don't think I would have the stomach to make it through the whole thing. Nearly all of Furet's premises are absurd, because they come from an unwillingness to consider context, from the desire to superimpose 20th century politics onto the 18th century, and from the hypocritical recycling of old counterrevolutionary rants passed off as something new. Schama, less cleverly and more luridly, does essentially the same thing.
As for my school, I don't have much to say about it, unless you have any more specific questions....
Again, I'm glad you've been enjoying my journal, and please feel free to keep reading and commenting--that's what it's there for!