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MacPherson the Historian - by Mairi MacPherson & Jim MacPherson (Paperback)
About this item
Highlights
- This is the first book-length study of James Macpherson (1736-1796) that considers him as an historian.
- About the Author: Dr Mairi MacPherson is an academic and museum expert based in the Scottish Highlands, where she has published extensively on the works of James Macpherson and, together with Jim, redesigned the Clan Macpherson Museum in Newtonmore.
- 296 Pages
- Literary Criticism, European
Description
About the Book
The first study of James Macpherson (1736-1796) as an historian examines his published works, showing how he was an Enlightement historian interweaving ideas of narrative, philosophy, with debates about commercial modernity and empire.
Book Synopsis
This is the first book-length study of James Macpherson (1736-1796) that considers him as an historian. From his early poetry, to the Ossianic Collections, his prose histories, and his later political writing, Macpherson's subject was the past and he engaged with the latest Enlightenment theories about how to write history.
Macpherson the Historian examines James' published works, from the neoclassical verse of The Highlander (1758) to his pamphlets defending the British imperial state during the late 1770s. In all of these texts, Macpherson wrote as an Enlightenment historian, where ideas about narrative, philosophy, and erudition were interwoven with eighteenth-century debates about the Highlands, commercial modernity, and the British Empire.Review Quotes
an outstanding scholarly study that enriches our understanding of this most complex of characters - a lifelong advocate for the Highlands, one of the foremost Enlightenment thinkers and writers, a key player within the British political establishment, and not least, a historian who helped lay the foundations of modern historical practice.--David Taylor "West Highland Notes and Queries"
The MacPhersons' documentation of sources is impressive, notably in the extensive use of primary and
secondary sources in footnotes--more than 700 footnotes within the three central chapters. Their bibliography and index reflect an intense effort at gathering the essential sources and ensuring that future scholars will have a highly creditable resource. All academic libraries must add this book to their collection for those studying eighteenth-century history and thought, Scotland's cultural and intellectual past, and eighteenth-century British literature.
About the Author
Dr Mairi MacPherson is an academic and museum expert based in the Scottish Highlands, where she has published extensively on the works of James Macpherson and, together with Jim, redesigned the Clan Macpherson Museum in Newtonmore.
Jim MacPherson is Programme Leader for MLitt British Studies, Postgraduate Research Co-Ordinator and Lecturer in History at The Centre for History, University of the Highlands and Islands.