The Practices and Perils of Oral History as a Research Method

27/2 Séminaire méthodologique sur la question de l’histoire orale, animé par la chair internationale Thomas Daniell, Prof à Kyoto University: "The Practices and Perils of Oral History as a Research Method”

Based on Thomas Daniell’s recent book about contemporary Japanese architecture, An Anatomy of Influence (AA Publications, 2018), this seminar will address the use of oral history in architectural research. Comprehensive biographical information is lacking in architectural history generally, and in Japanese architectural history specifically. Arguably, biography helps elucidate the theory and thereby elucidates the architecture. Oral history—that is to say, one-on-one conversations—may be utilized in deciphering the theory and practice of architects by asking about their childhoods, educational experiences, employment histories, friendships, rivalries, and so forth. Nonetheless, in oral history, every narrator is unreliable. Memories may be distorted by time, nostalgia, festering grudges or wishful thinking. Responsibility may be retrospectively claimed or denied, credit given or taken, scores settled, guilt assuaged, reputations protected, legacies consolidated. This makes life both easier and harder for the scholar. Often, it is impossible to confirm the veracity of the statements made in such conversations. Through case studies, we will examine ways in which oral history can make a useful contribution to research.

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