Plural Pasts

What is history about? This Element shows that answers centred on the keyword ''past events'' are incomplete even if they are not simply wrong. Interweaving theoretical and historical perspectives it provides an abstract overview of the thematic plurality that characterizes contemporary academic historiography. The reflection on different sorts of pasts that can be at focus in historical research and writing encompasses events as well as non-events especially recursive social structures and cultural webs. Some consequences of such plurality for discussions concerning historical methodology explanation exemplification and representation are also outlined. The basic message reinforced throughout is that the great relevance of non-event-centred approaches should prompt us to talk more about histories in the plural and less about history in the singular.