De anima historica naturaliter. Bunna Ebels-Hoving en de verlokkingen van de historische sensatie

Abstract

The anima historica naturaliter: Bunna Ebels-Hoving and the Allure of Historical Sensation
In her book (Geschiedenis als metgezel) Bunna Ebels-Hoving pays a great deal of attention to explaining how and why she became a historian. This is important, for it describes a process that is often done by well-established high ranking professors, while here we are allowed to hear the voice of an intellectually engaged woman who did not reach the solitary heights of academia, but nevertheless remained a keen observer of the social practices and intellectual evolution within a part of the historian’s profession that was very much determined by tradition –medieval studies.

For a contemporary reader almost an anthropological perfume emanates from the way she describes how she was introduced by her masters in the profession. For another central theme, the technical and epistemologicalaspects of how one practices medieval history, it looks as if very little has changed.Especially concerning the way mediaevalists might use the so-called traditional auxiliary sciences, palaeography and diplomatics, in the first place her book readsas a down to earth but very just appraisal of the values at stake. Some of the discussions she recalls having witnessed indeed refer to both older examples and actual debates.

This review is part of the discussion forum 'Geschiedenis als metgezel' (Bunna Ebels-Hoving).