Oral History Dissertation workshop 18 October 2016 Dan Branch Introduction • ‘All history was at first oral.’ • Oral history as the study of memory rather than a substitution when written sources unavailable. Why oral history? • History beyond the archives – Non-literate societies – Marginalised groups (histories from below) – Elites – History of the everyday • History as the study of memory – What’s remembered and forgotten – Rumour Challenges of oral history • Intellectual – What actually happened? – Movement or methodology? • Practical – The interview… • More than words. – Resources • Time The interview • Before – Ethics – Research – Identifying subjects • During – – – – Technology Structure Setting Power • After – Transcription – Storage Writing oral history • Let your sources speak (within limits) • What do the sources tell you? • Know your sources, written or oral • Creative but rigorous methodology Where next? • Department ethics form • Oral History Network reading list • OHS ‘Getting Started’ • OHA ‘Principles and Best Practice’ • IHR ‘Making History’ (for historiography)
