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Ignoring ‘History from Below’: People's History in the Historiography of Singapore
Author(s) -
Song Ernest Koh Wee
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
history compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.121
H-Index - 1
ISSN - 1478-0542
DOI - 10.1111/j.1478-0542.2006.00370.x
Subject(s) - historiography , nexus (standard) , elite , personality psychology , trace (psycholinguistics) , history , genius , subject (documents) , face (sociological concept) , aesthetics , psychology , personality , political science , sociology , social science , social psychology , engineering , law , politics , art , art history , philosophy , computer science , linguistics , library science , embedded system
The history of Singapore is widely understood as a history of its economic success. From its heyday as a nexus of trade during the imperial era to the ‘technotropolis’ that boasts high living standards for most of its citizens, Singapore as a historical subject is often viewed through the lens of the ruling elite. By expending the need to acknowledge the historical function of the citizenry in the island's socio‐economic development, the policies and personalities of the Singaporean leadership have been erroneously and simplistically used by many as an example of how the sheer genius of a few can triumph in the face of overwhelming adversity. This article seeks to trace tangents in the wider development of Singapore's historiography in order to account for the general disinterest in people's histories of Singapore.