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historicism
(redirected from historicists)

   Also found in: Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.01 sec.
his·tor·i·cism  (h-stôr-szm, -str-)
n.
1. A theory that events are determined or influenced by conditions and inherent processes beyond the control of humans.
2. A theory that stresses the significant influence of history as a criterion of value.
3. Art & Architecture The deliberate use or revival of historical styles in contemporary works.
4. Philosophy The view that historical periods should be studied without imposing anachronistic categories of evaluation.

his·tori·cist adj. & n.

historicism [hɪˈstɒrɪˌsɪzəm]
n
1. (Historical Terms) the belief that natural laws govern historical events which in turn determine social and cultural phenomena
2. (Historical Terms) the doctrine that each period of history has its own beliefs and values inapplicable to any other, so that nothing can be understood independently of its historical context
3. (Historical Terms) the conduct of any enquiry in accordance with these views
4. (Historical Terms) excessive emphasis on history, historicism, past styles, etc.
historicist  n & adj

historicism
1. a theory that history is determined by immutable laws.
2. a theory that all cultural phenomena are historically determined and that all historians should study a period on its own merits.
3. a search for the laws of historical evolution.
4. a profound or an excessive respect for historical institutions, as traditions or laws. Also historism. — historicist, n., adj.
See also: History
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.historicism - a theory that social and cultural events are determined by history
hypothesis, theory, possibility - a tentative insight into the natural world; a concept that is not yet verified but that if true would explain certain facts or phenomena; "a scientific hypothesis that survives experimental testing becomes a scientific theory"; "he proposed a fresh theory of alkalis that later was accepted in chemical practices"
Translations
historicism [hɪˈstɒrɪsɪzəm] Nhistoricismo m
historicism
nHistorizismus m


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? Mentioned in ? References in periodicals archive
 
Like those who had preceded them, New Historicists rejected the idea that any one perspective can be privileged: they assailed the so-called view from nowhere, the idea that authority can be ascribed to any one critical or historical perspective, but while deconstruction seemed always to admit the possibility of its own frivolous irrelevance, New Historicism sought to extend radical skepticism to the experiential world.
Heavily influenced by the New Left Marxism of the seventies and eighties, the New Historicists were tempted to attribute all literary greatness to heavy-handed social forces of dominance, oppression, patriarchy, and other such demons in the postmodern Confessor's Manual.
Feminists chalk everything up to gender, Marxists to class conflict, New Historicists to social energies, and Bloom to the anxiety of influence.
 
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