Confession: I am obsessed with the History Channel.
When my husband and I first moved into our house last year, we didn't have cable for the first few months. It really didn't bother me that much because we were busy setting things up and buying stuff for the house. Yet as soon as we got cable, we realized how much we were missing. I came home from work on the day of installation to him sitting on the couch with the remote.
"Babe, you gotta watch this show."
It was Swamp People on the History channel. Since that show, we have both been hooked on the channel and 90% of the shows we watch are on it. I have always been a fan of history as a subject in school, but now I just love it. My husband and I religiously follow Swamp People, American Pickers, and Pawn Stars--all shows that I was reminded of while reading through "What is Oral History."
The first quote that stuck out to me was "oral history is, at its heart, a dialogue." Al of the shows I mentioned are just that. Swamp People is more of a reality show because we never meet the "interviewer" ,yet we still get to find out relevant facts and histories because of the director and producer of the show. The characters talk about the dangers of their profession and they frequently talk about the history of it. In the other two shows, American Pickers and Pawn Stars, we kind of know the interviewers because they are characters in the show. The American Pickers stars go around the country looking for antiques and in the process meet and talk to the owners of said antiques. I must say they come across some characters. These owners then tell their personal connection to the item and the actual history of it. In Pawn Stars, the pawn shop owners ask questions to the clients who come in with items to sell or pawn. This is all dialogue, and though it is not called "oral history" per say, I don't see how it couldn't be lumped into that genre.
The next quote that stuck out to me was "Just because someone 'was there' doesn't mean they fully understood 'what happened', and this really relates to the reliability of the narrator. An interviewer must make sure the interviewee is a credible source to the best of their ability. No one is perfect, but an effort must be made. This is also something the both of the stars in American Pickers and Pawn Stars must consider. If they are not sure about information an owner is telling them about an item, they get their trusted professional appraisers to weigh in. It is always interesting to see who is and who isn't telling the whole truth about their items.
The last point that reminded me of my shows was that a better interview will be produced if it is given adequate time and if it be done some place comfortable. In American Pickers, the stars stress to establish a connection with the people they are buying from because then they can bargain comfortably with them. This would be the same idea if I were to do an oral history about something with a person. If the subject is touchy or overtly personal, the last thing I want to do would be to jump right into it and be too blunt. The interview must be given time to develop in order to provide a reliable, complete, and compelling oral history account.
All in all, now I understand why I like these shows so much. I have always been a fan of history, and with personal stories intertwined in these shows, I am able to learn and obtain even more. I can place faces and places with dates and times in history and now it is much more personal experience for me.
When my husband and I first moved into our house last year, we didn't have cable for the first few months. It really didn't bother me that much because we were busy setting things up and buying stuff for the house. Yet as soon as we got cable, we realized how much we were missing. I came home from work on the day of installation to him sitting on the couch with the remote.
"Babe, you gotta watch this show."
It was Swamp People on the History channel. Since that show, we have both been hooked on the channel and 90% of the shows we watch are on it. I have always been a fan of history as a subject in school, but now I just love it. My husband and I religiously follow Swamp People, American Pickers, and Pawn Stars--all shows that I was reminded of while reading through "What is Oral History."
The first quote that stuck out to me was "oral history is, at its heart, a dialogue." Al of the shows I mentioned are just that. Swamp People is more of a reality show because we never meet the "interviewer" ,yet we still get to find out relevant facts and histories because of the director and producer of the show. The characters talk about the dangers of their profession and they frequently talk about the history of it. In the other two shows, American Pickers and Pawn Stars, we kind of know the interviewers because they are characters in the show. The American Pickers stars go around the country looking for antiques and in the process meet and talk to the owners of said antiques. I must say they come across some characters. These owners then tell their personal connection to the item and the actual history of it. In Pawn Stars, the pawn shop owners ask questions to the clients who come in with items to sell or pawn. This is all dialogue, and though it is not called "oral history" per say, I don't see how it couldn't be lumped into that genre.
The next quote that stuck out to me was "Just because someone 'was there' doesn't mean they fully understood 'what happened', and this really relates to the reliability of the narrator. An interviewer must make sure the interviewee is a credible source to the best of their ability. No one is perfect, but an effort must be made. This is also something the both of the stars in American Pickers and Pawn Stars must consider. If they are not sure about information an owner is telling them about an item, they get their trusted professional appraisers to weigh in. It is always interesting to see who is and who isn't telling the whole truth about their items.
The last point that reminded me of my shows was that a better interview will be produced if it is given adequate time and if it be done some place comfortable. In American Pickers, the stars stress to establish a connection with the people they are buying from because then they can bargain comfortably with them. This would be the same idea if I were to do an oral history about something with a person. If the subject is touchy or overtly personal, the last thing I want to do would be to jump right into it and be too blunt. The interview must be given time to develop in order to provide a reliable, complete, and compelling oral history account.
All in all, now I understand why I like these shows so much. I have always been a fan of history, and with personal stories intertwined in these shows, I am able to learn and obtain even more. I can place faces and places with dates and times in history and now it is much more personal experience for me.
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