Biography, history and historiography of intellectuals: new perspectives

Abstract

This book chapter presents the state of the art on the historiography of intellectuals, focusing on the French methodological approach -the Anglo-Saxon one is always more flexible- and on the paradigm that has been followed by the discipline in Spain in recent decades. It shows how the historiography of intellectuals, their biographies, individual or collective, is experiencing a moment of splendour. Secondly, the discipline and its bibliographical results are flooding. There is practically no movement, generational group or person without monographic studies. Although they are certainly uneven, it can be said that, in fact, we have a fairly complete panorama for the historiography of intellectuals, at least in the first four decades of the twentieth century in Spain. And, also, that in recent years, historiographical gaps have been filled in, not only for that Silver Age, but also for the years of Franco's dictatorship and the current democratic period. Thus, it can be concluded that the biographies, histories and historiography of intellectuals are experiencing a golden age that heralds a boom period for the discipline. The richness and quality of these studies are bequeathing us new perspectives and rich approaches to the Spanish twentieth century.