Insight Into Some Methodological Issues and Disputes in the Research of Intellectual History

Intelektualna istorija predstavlja vrlo širok i neod ređen pojam, praćen sporenjima i nesaglasnošću među istoričarima koju pokušavaju da ga preciznije definišu. Stoga, rad predstavlja skroman pokušaj da se na što pregledniji način pruži uvid u nekoliko metodoloških problema i dilema koji prate ovu raspravu. Najpre su predstavljeni pojedini aspekti u sporu oko predmeta i određenja discipline, da bi, potom, bilo razmotreno i nekoliko metodoloških pristupa. Analiziran je tradicionalni metod „istorije ideja“ u SAD, lingvistički kontekstualizam „kembričke škole“, odnos postmodernizma i intelektualne istorije, kao i društvena intelektualna istorija. U završnom delu se raspravlja o određenim savremenim tokovima u okviru discipline, kao i jednom od potencijalnih rešenja za ranije krize i metodološke teškoće.The article attempts to present some methodological approaches, controversies, and dilemmas in the research of intellectual history. First, the paper shows a dispute over the subject matter and the definition of the discipline from the perspective of influential scholars in the field. The major part of the study aims to show several methodological approaches: the traditional method of the “history of ideas” in the USA, the linguistic contextualism of the “Cambridge school”, the relationship between postmodernism and intellectual history, as well as social intellectual history. Similarities and differences between selected approaches are discussed considering their contributions and shortcomings. The final part of the article examines contemporary trends within the discipline, offering one of the potential solutions for earlier crises and methodological difficulties