Minor knowledge?

The book Minor Knowledge and Microhistory - Manuscript Culture in the Nineteenth Century was recently published by the distinguished publisher Routlegde.  The authors are Sigurður Gylfi Magnússon, professor in cultural studies at the University of Iceland's Faculty of History and Philosophy, and Davíð Ólafsson, adjunct lecturer in cultural studies at the University's Faculty of Icelandic and Comparative Cultural Studies.   

The book is based on extensive research conducted by the two authors for almost two decades and studies everyday writing practices among ordinary people in Iceland in the 19th and early 20th centuries.  The Iceland of this time was a rural society, and one of the poorest, most primitive countries in Europe. The writing, that mostly took place outside of the parameters of formal education and cultural institutions is put in perspective with international research in manuscript culture in recent decades and literacy after the advent of print, and former research into literacy and literary culture in Iceland. 

The book consists of three parts: The first part discusses theory and historiography of text in view of international discussions on scribal culture in the wake of Gutenberg's print revolution, and explores new trends in literacy research emphasising practices and agency.  This part also addresses the value of microhistory for this type of study, put in local and global perspectives.

In the second part of the book the scene is set within the Icelandic community of the nineteenth century and the harsh reality facing the general public. The poor standard of living in a poverty-stricken micro society with weak infrastructure is the setting for the stories of individuals discussed in the book. Writing, fiction and sholarship was the centre of their lives; with no formal education nor strong economic or social standing. The chapter also accounts for different points-of-view among scholars on the spreading of education and its connection to people’s emotional lives and circumstances; everyday life.

The third part focuses on the “barefoot historians”; a group of common people and writers.  This is a group of men who for the most part lived in the West of Iceland and belonged to the lower classes of the peasant society; from poor tenants to dependents. They all left behind a vast collection of personal records and writings that the research is to a large extent based on; biographies, journals and letters as well as other writings. In this part of the book the authors attempt to assess the value of barefoot historians to Icelandic society and global folk culture. They sat every day, year in and year out, writing old material and new, creating their own science and sharing material with their fellow men.

The book is approximately 240 pages. 

Please click here for interviews with the author Davíð Ólafsson in Icelandic and Siguður Gylfi Magnússon’s coverage on the book in English