Aims and Methods
In their work we can read two definite aims:
- to seek out a popular revolutionary tradition that could inspire contemporary activists; and yet
- to apply a Marxist economic approach which placed an emphasis on social conditions rather than supposed "Great Men".
This dualism was represented by Marx and Engels' dictum that "men make their own history, but they do not do so in conditions of their own choosing," which is regularly paraphrased in CPHG members' texts.
Revisiting and reinstating popular agency in the narrative of British history required originality and determination in the research process, to draw out marginal voices from texts in which they were barely mentioned or active. The techniques influenced both feminist historians and the Subaltern Studies Group, writing the histories of marginalised groups.
Read more about this topic: Communist Party Historians Group
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“Nature seems to have treasured up the depth of our mind talents and abilities that we are not aware of; it is the privilege of the passions alone to bring them to light, and to direct us sometimes to surer and more excellent aims than conscious effort could.”
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