ABSTRACT
The General Introduction outlines the basic points of departure for the volume. Cultural history has been an interdisciplinary and collaborative project. The Routledge Companion follows this tradition by bringing together experts of mediaeval, early modern and modern history. The present book is an attempt to show how the consideration of methods and theories of cultural history has influenced the current research in the field. The chapters emphasize that the experiences people have contribute to their behaviour and are the basis for their interpretation of the world. People are linked together and with their environment by social practices and various forms of communication. In the process, they generate interpretations and give meanings to the world around them. The volume is divided into three parts: the first extends from the mid-thirteenth to the end of the fifteenth century, the second continues up to the mid-eighteenth century and, finally, the third part focuses on modern history up to the present.
