Writing That Is Not Written: Clues, the Unconscious, the Indirect, and Traces; What Genealogy Can Learn from Microhistory

Authors

  • Stephen B. Hatton Independent

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24240/23992964.2022.1234540

Abstract

After reviewing recent genealogists' writings that genealogy is a kind of microhistory, the article lists six characteristics of microhistory and argues that genealogy is not microhistory though the two share a focus on small scale groups or people.  However, genealogy may learn from microhistory"s use of clues in reading texts.  What is revealed by studying clues is a form of indirect evidence.  A comparison of the Freudian unconscious and its relevance to genealogy helps draw out the usefulness of clues in family history research.  The article wraps up with a brief overview of traces in genealogical research.

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Published

2022-10-02

Issue

Section

Articles