In the following review of Society and Culture in Early Modern France, Cobb maintains that Davis speaks on behalf of her subjects rather than allowing them to speak for themselves.
“…...
Read more
In the following review of Fiction in the Archives, Adams contends that Davis's collection of pardon tales makes for enjoyable reading.
Mini-storia, mini-noia, say the sardonic, or perhaps j...
Read more
In the following review of Fiction in the Archives, Trexler praises the quality of Davis's writing, but suggests that she could have produced a stronger argument if the book were longer.
A p...
Read more
In the following review, Dewald maintains that Fiction in the Archives exposes readers to narratives fashioned by men and women from the sixteenth century.
In all her scholarship, Natalie Zemon Dav...
Read more
In the following review of Fiction in the Archives, Roelker praises Davis's approach to social history.
This unusual book [Fiction in the Archives] owes its originality and its distinction t...
Read more
In the following review of Fiction in the Archives, Chartier contends that Davis's text blurs the boundaries between literature and history.
History is narration—whatever the history....
Read more
In the following interview, conducted February 1991, Davis discusses her early life and her work as an innovator in the field of social history.
Born in 1928 in Detroit, Michigan, Davis received he...
Read more
In the following review of Women on the Margins, Adams finds that its individual stories of three women are interesting reading, but feels the book would be stronger if greater comparisons were made b...
Read more
In the following review, Todd claims that Women on the Margins has both academic and general appeal.
This erudite and audacious book [Women on the Margins], like its subjects, occupies margins. Not...
Read more
In the following review, Schutte recommends Women on the Margins while at the same time suggesting that Davis's interpretations of the individual narratives are in some instances implausible.
...
Read more
In the following review of Women on the Margins, Ranum reports that Davis does not offer more than a surface analysis of the relative powerlessness of her three subjects despite the fact that their po...
Read more
In the following review, Blaisdell recommends Society and Culture in Early Modern France for its treatment of the lives of ordinary people in sixteenth-century France whose stories are largely neglect...
Read more
In the following review of Women on the Margins, Seed contends that since two of its subjects participated in the colonization of the Americas and occupied relatively privileged positions outside of E...
Read more
In the following review of Women on the Margins, Kupperman contends that since Davis offers no conventional interpretation of her subjects' lives, she invites readers to formulate their own int...
Read more
In the following essay, Thomas contends that Davis has shed light on personal relationships in sixteenth-century France with her study of gift-giving—The Gift in Sixteenth-Century France—...
Read more
In the following review, Leonard finds The Gift in Sixteenth-Century France a valuable resource for students and professional historians.
Natalie Zemon Davis, a professor of history emerita at Prin...
Read more
In the following review of The Gift in Sixteenth-Century France, Powis compares Davis's treatment of the subject of gift-giving to that of her predecessors.
Among the vivid virtues of Natali...
Read more
In the following essay, Miller discusses the historical context of The Gift in Sixteenth-Century France and reviews earlier literature on the subject of gift-giving.
I.
Walter Benjamin, who perishe...
Read more
In the following review, Toplin suggests that while Slaves on Screen has much to recommend it, Davis at times ignores the fact that films must be entertaining as well as historically accurate.
In t...
Read more
In the following essay, Snowman discusses Davis's unique approach to history in such works as The Return of Martin Guerre, Women on the Margins, Slaves on Screen, and others.
What is history...
Read more
In the following essay, Rosenstone suggests that Davis's analysis of the accuracy of the film genre in representing historical events fails to judge film on its own terms rather than on the sta...
Read more
In the following review, Ladurie summarizes the narrative of The Return of Martin Guerre, praising Davis for an unbiased reconstruction of Guerre's story.
The biographies of peasants and esp...
Read more
In the following review of The Return of Martin Guerre, Christiansen takes issue with Davis's claims to have discovered the true story of Martin Guerre.
It is a curious story. Martin Guerre ...
Read more
In the following review of The Return of Martin Guerre, Hufton suggests that the Guerre story sheds light on many aspects of village life in sixteenth-century France.
The preoccupation of historian...
Read more
In the following review, Parker praises The Return of Martin Guerre for its readability and for the professionalism of Davis's reconstruction of sixteenth-century village life.
In the mid-si...
Read more
In the following review of The Return of Martin Guerre, Wagley contends that the book offers an introduction to a new type of history based on the lives of ordinary individuals.
The story of Martin...
Read more
In the following review, Moote suggests that The Return of Martin Guerre provides answers to questions raised by the film version of Guerre's story.
It is a fitting tribute to a leading Amer...
Read more
In the following essay, Finlay discusses Davis's Martin Guerre film collaboration and her book in relation to the various versions of the Martin Guerre story that preceded those texts.
While...
Read more