Historians, Emotions, and Children’s Trauma in the Archives

Jack Hodgson

doi:10.1177/10778004231200265

Historians, Emotions, and Children’s Trauma in the Archives

Jack Hodgson

School of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

This reflective essay focuses on the emotionality of children’s creations in the archives, particularly where children’s creations give insight into traumatic histories. I argue that history will be better placed when historians write more openly about the inherently distressing nature of the materials they consume. It is impossible to be unaffected by such material and acknowledging this will make our work more transparent by outlining to readers the context it was written in. The complex, emotive interpretive task historians face is demonstrated using two children’s drawings—one from the Spanish Civil War and the other from the Darfur Genocide.

Original language	English
Journal	QUALITATIVE INQUIRY
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/10778004231200265
Publication status	E-pub ahead of print - 27 Sept 2023

Keywords

children's drawings
children's history
historiography
history of emotions
Spanish Civil War
children and genocide

Access to Document

10.1177/10778004231200265

Cite this

@article{dacfbc2019284542b0598112e9b76a62,

title = "Historians, Emotions, and Children{\textquoteright}s Trauma in the Archives",

abstract = "This reflective essay focuses on the emotionality of children{\textquoteright}s creations in the archives, particularly where children{\textquoteright}s creations give insight into traumatic histories. I argue that history will be better placed when historians write more openly about the inherently distressing nature of the materials they consume. It is impossible to be unaffected by such material and acknowledging this will make our work more transparent by outlining to readers the context it was written in. The complex, emotive interpretive task historians face is demonstrated using two children{\textquoteright}s drawings—one from the Spanish Civil War and the other from the Darfur Genocide.",

keywords = "children's drawings, children's history, historiography, history of emotions, Spanish Civil War, children and genocide",

author = "Jack Hodgson",

year = "2023",

month = sep,

day = "27",

doi = "10.1177/10778004231200265",

language = "English",

journal = "QUALITATIVE INQUIRY",

issn = "1077-8004",

publisher = "SAGE Publications",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Historians, Emotions, and Children’s Trauma in the Archives

AU - Hodgson, Jack

PY - 2023/9/27

Y1 - 2023/9/27

N2 - This reflective essay focuses on the emotionality of children’s creations in the archives, particularly where children’s creations give insight into traumatic histories. I argue that history will be better placed when historians write more openly about the inherently distressing nature of the materials they consume. It is impossible to be unaffected by such material and acknowledging this will make our work more transparent by outlining to readers the context it was written in. The complex, emotive interpretive task historians face is demonstrated using two children’s drawings—one from the Spanish Civil War and the other from the Darfur Genocide.

AB - This reflective essay focuses on the emotionality of children’s creations in the archives, particularly where children’s creations give insight into traumatic histories. I argue that history will be better placed when historians write more openly about the inherently distressing nature of the materials they consume. It is impossible to be unaffected by such material and acknowledging this will make our work more transparent by outlining to readers the context it was written in. The complex, emotive interpretive task historians face is demonstrated using two children’s drawings—one from the Spanish Civil War and the other from the Darfur Genocide.

KW - children's drawings

KW - children's history

KW - historiography

KW - history of emotions

KW - Spanish Civil War

KW - children and genocide

U2 - 10.1177/10778004231200265

DO - 10.1177/10778004231200265

M3 - Article

SN - 1077-8004

JO - QUALITATIVE INQUIRY

JF - QUALITATIVE INQUIRY

ER -