A Ordem do Tempo Histórico: a Longue Durée e a Micro-História

Abstract

This article is concerned with Fernand Braudel's conception of the plural temporality and, above all, the longue durée as a practical tool for historical inquiry. Through an examination of the work of Braudel's colleague Ernst Labrousse, it emphasizes the theoretical and methodological assumptions underlying the practice of serial history as the means to reconstruct such "structural temporalities." Finally, it treats the concern for the episodic and short-term that characterizes Italian microhistória as a reaction to the dominance of French serial history which, nonetheless remains in relation to Braudel's conception of plural time. In this way the article seeks to make explicit the relationship between the socalled "second Annales" of Braudel and Italian microhistory and to suggest ways the conceptions of temporality might promote dialogue between diverse historiographical approaches. Keywords Introduction: Fernand Braudel and the Longue DuréeIn his remarks at the conference inaugurating the Fernand Braudel Center at Binghamton University in 1977, Braudel emphasized the practical character of his conception of the longue durée and plural time. His intent was not to produce a work of theory or to 'philosophize. ' Rather, it was to organize the ideas that he formed while writing The Mediterranean. 1 In a similar vein, this chapter is concerned with practical questions of historical inquiry raised by Fernand Braudel's conception of longue durée, rather than with attempting to "theorize" either Braudel or "historical temporalities." It examines the longue durée as a concept of historical social science and its deployment as a practical tool for constructing historical inquiry and conducting research by specifying the longue durée within Braudel's concept of "plural time" and interrogating the critical response of Italian microhistoria to the notions of structural time and serial history put forth by Braudel and Ernest Labrousse.At the outset, I would like to note that Braudel proposes various formulations of longue durée. In this chapter, I privilege the historically singular and geophysically specific construction of longue durée structures that is most evident in the first part of Braudel's The Mediterranean. In my understanding, this temporal movement is produced through very slow, almost geological, societal interaction with geography and environment over the very long-term. It is perhaps what Braudel refers to as the "time of the sages." I emphasize this construction of longue durée because it is the longest conceivable historical temporality and most comprehensive ground for historical interpretation. In addition, it opens the way for the integration of geography and environment into historical analysis. At the same time, Braudel puts forth other formulations of longue durée, for instance Ernst Robert Curtius' account of the cultural system of Latin civilization from the fall of the Empire to the fourteenth century or Pierre Francastel's treatment of the 'geometric space of Western painting.

diálogo produtivo entre a nova história intelectual e os estudos historiográficos

“…Em adendo à perspectiva contextualista, torna-se preponderante registrar que a matriz de análise edificada pela história dos conceitos, conforme a capitaneada por Koselleck, trouxe à tona o caráter primordial de uma análise dos conceitos com base na concatenação entre os níveis temporais (Cf. Tomich 2011). Segundo Marcelo Gantus Jasmin, [...] a perspectiva de mudança conceitual adquire traços diacrônicos de dinamismo histórico e acentos claramente hermenêuticos que estão ausentes, ou são muito tênues, nas proposições fundadoras do contextualismo linguístico de Cambridge.…”

History and Engagement in the Work of Bezerra de Menezes

“…Therefore, geographical distance, which initially inhibited Brazilian rapprochement towards Asia and Africa, later encouraged it. International structures must be seen neither as sole inhibitors of the human actions nor as immutable phenomena, since they may not only obstruct human actions, but also support them (Tomich 2011).…”

In search of continuity

“…On the one hand, Fernand Braudel, the founder of a longue durée argues that "there can be no science without historical continuity; an anonymous history working in the depths and most often in silence" (Harris, 2004, p. 161). Such a view of history focusses on events that occur nearly imperceptibly over a long time (Braudel and Wallerstein, 2009) and the slowly changing relationships between people and the world (Tomich, 2011), as a result of which "history escapes the awareness of the actors" (Harris, 2004 p. 165).…”