At the Limits of History

Jenkins (University of Chichester UK, emeritus) is known as an unabashed iconoclast in the world of historical theory. Over the past fifty years or so, academia has been through several phases in an attempt to revitalize the "doing" of history as well as the teaching of it. Jenkins suggests that we throw the baby out with the bathwater and start over. This has not been popular in many circles but, once he has the reader's attention, Jenkins then proposes ways to approach history, including admitting that no human being, including the historian, can be totally objective. This volume is a collection of his essays over the past few years, published in various journals. He includes two articles by colleagues who disagree with him, along with his replies. Jenkins' ideas are provocative but rarified. His style is replete with academic catchphrases that indicate that his work is only for other academics. It would be interesting to see the reaction to his thoughts if they were couched in language that anyone could understand. Annotation 穢2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)