Imaginative sympathy

[osprey_archer]

“Critique always aims to challenge the givenness of any starting-point, assumption, or range of reference, and usually to unmask the potentially sinister interests that are served by allowing any such starting-point to go unchallenged...

In much work done under this inspiration, there is a curious asymmetry in which the assumptions of the figures who are the objects of study are subjected to a much more severe regime than are the assumptions of the ones doing the studying. My recipe would be the opposite: extend the greatest possible imaginative sympathy to the expressions of the human agents we study, but combine it with the greatest possible skepticism about any of the explanatory mechanisms by means of which we try to account for their actions.”

- Stefan Collini, What Are Universities For?

I would like to scrawl this quote on my wall in black paint, a mission statement not only for understanding history but for writing stories, as well.

Comments

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Yes, quite! I find that reading is a lot more fun, actually, when I at least try to go along with what the author is going for. People seem to believe that if they aren't actively working to critique what they read, they'll uncritically accept everything; but I think it actually makes it clearer which things are actually flaws (rather than, say, pet peeves) when you try to work with the author.