Published 2004 | Version v1
Journal article

What 'cultural' approach of electricity history?

  • 1. Centre national de la recherche scientifique - CNRS, Institut d'Histoire du Temps Present - IHTP (France)

Description

The evolution of electricity consumption should be related to social and cultural change. To understand this change better, we should use the notion of 'mentalities', which is less vague than 'culture' and permits us to include practices in a dynamic totality. It is true that the study of consumers is difficult since they do not appear much in business archives. We must study the literature, advertisement and art of the time. Electricity was given its fairy status by the press. Before 1914, many myths, both frightening and reassuring, circulated around this form of energy. It is only during the Inter-war period that electricity had been degraded from the status of goddess to the one of maid. And yet, it did keep its double aspect of a soft and dangerous form of energy, as shown by its mid-1970's marriage to nuclear energy. A comparative cultural history of electricity remains to be done

Availability note (English)

Available from doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3917/ahe.002.0139

Additional details

Additional titles

Original title (French)
Quelle approche 'culturelle' de l'histoire de l'electricite?

Identifiers

Publishing Information

Journal Title
Annales Historiques de l'Electricite
Journal Volume
1
Journal Issue
no.2
Journal Page Range
p. 139-145
ISSN
1762-3227

INIS

Country of Publication
France
Country of Input or Organization
France
INIS RN
48084519
Subject category
S99: GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS;
Descriptors DEI
ELECTRIC POWER INDUSTRY; ELECTRICITY; HISTORICAL ASPECTS; NUCLEAR ENERGY; SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS
Descriptors DEC
ENERGY; INDUSTRY; INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS