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Comment and debate, Page 2

Resistance histories

The political resistance against Nazism, Fascism and German military occupation in the middle years of the twentieth century has made the term synonymous with leftist dissidence against authoritarianism. That is the case despite the fact that not all resistance against these forces emerged from the left, and not all of it was anti-fascist in ideological terms. Just think of the generalsā€™ plot against Hitler in 1944, or the efforts of Charles de Gaulle and his Free French in London. Continue reading →

How a History of Conquest Shapes the Present

One of our modern history lecturers, Dr Charlotte Lydia Riley, has written a piece with Professor Gurminder K. Bhambra about the legacies of the British empire in modern British culture. What do we mean when we talk about ā€œempireā€? We use the narratives of imperialism to describe everything from British and American foreign policy in the Middle East to the rapid global spread of McDonalds and Coca-Cola. Continue reading →

Trust Me, I’m a Doctor…

Joan Tumblety has recently published an article in the Lancet exploring the history of medical lobbying (follow the link here to read more). Here she explores some of the key questions that she has about this topic: Trust me, I'm a doctor.... If we laugh at this popular phrase, what is the truth we are recognising? In my research, I have become increasingly interested in the problem of what might be called the cultural overreach of physicians. Continue reading →