Alluding to the ghost of Communism which, according to the Communist Manifesto, hovered over Europe as both a threat and a much desired prospect, I contend in the paper that, in like manner, an ideal image of science looms over history as both an enforcer of discipline and a motivational ambition. By revisiting recent writings, mainly by Hayden White, I show that the concern which preoccupied historians and philosophers, at least since modern times, is not only still present, like a ghost, even among scholars who challenge the ubiquitous authority of nineteenth-century science, but also that the image of science they invoke is a rather dated one, at least from the point of view of a historical philosophy of science. I also argue that a number of oppositions, such as the opposition between the literal and metaphorical use of language, between invention and discovery, or between facts and their interpretation, that supposedly mark the difference between history and science collapse once the phantasm of the ideal of scientificity is dissipated.View full textDownload full textKeywordshistory, historiography, science, White, truth, interpretationRelated var addthis_config = { ui_cobrand: "Taylor & Francis Online", services_compact: "citeulike,netvibes,twitter,technorati,delicious,linkedin,facebook,stumbleupon,digg,google,more", pubid: "ra-4dff56cd6bb1830b" }; Add to shortlist Link Permalink http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13642521003710839
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