ABSTRACT
In the spring of 1987, Historical Research published a series of papers and reviews of studies on social history, which promoted a new vision for historical research in the new era after the reform and opening up. “The study of social history, or the new social history or new historiography seems to have become a ‘prominent subject’ or been regarded as the mainstream of historiography.” “From 1983 to 1985, ‘historiographical crisis’ became a key word for historians’ circles. College students and young scholars put forward this issue first, and then whole historians’ circles became involved in the discussion on the ‘existence and crux of this crisis’.” For historiography, the so-called “crisis” was just the normal return of historiography to itself; for historians, it was a sense of loss resulting from comparisons of the historians’ own experiences.
