Recent themes in historical thinking : historians in conversation / edited by Donald A. Yerxa.

Series editor's preface, vii -- Acknowledgments, ix -- Introduction: historical inquiry and thinking today, 1 -- PART 1. THE STATE HISTORICAL INQUIRY -- Are we asking too much of history? / Allan Megill, 9 -- What is history now? An interview with David Cannadine / conducted by Donald A. Yerxa, 17 -- On the current state of history: an interview with Richard J. Evans / conducted by Donald A. Yerxa, 23 -- Collective memory, history education, and historical consciousness / Peter Seixas, 28 -- Historical thinking is unnatural and immensely important: an interview with Sam Wineburg / conducted by Joseph S. Lucas, 35 -- Popular and professional history / John Lukacs, 44 -- The public use of history / Jerremy Black, 51 -- PART 2. POSTMODERNISM: THREE VIEWS -- Postmodernism and the truth of history / C. Behan McCullagh, 57 -- Postmodernism and historical inquiry: spoiled for choice? / Beverly Southgate, 63 -- Postmodernism and historiography / Willie Thompson, 69 -- PART. 3. ASSESSING COUNTERFACTUALS -- Telling it like it wasn't / Richard J. Evans, 77 -- Is the dark light enough? / Edward Ingram, 85 -- Good history needs counterfactuals / Richard Ned Lebow, 91 -- Counterfactuals and the historical imagination / William H. McNeil, 98 -- The new counterfactualists / Allan Megil, 101 -- Alternate history and memory / Gavriel Rosenfeld, 107 -- Counterfactulism defended / Jeremy Black, 111 -- When do counterfactuals work? / Robert Cowley, 115 -- Response / Richard J. Evans, 120 -- Further readings, 131 -- Contributors, 135 -- Index, 137.