Long confined to dusty books and austere documentaries, History has now taken over our screens and our imaginations in much more playful and immersive forms. From successful video games like Assassin’s Creed, to life-size reconstructions of iconic battles, to spectacular time travel in fiction, the past has never been more present in our cultural environment.
Should we rejoice or deplore it? This is the question that we will explore in this article, by looking at these new, interactive and creative ways of discovering History. What do they really tell us about the periods and events represented? Do they promote a more detailed understanding of the issues and lifestyles of the past, or do they on the contrary maintain a fantasized and reductive vision of the past?
Beyond this debate, we will see above all that this uninhibited and enjoyable relationship with History arouses growing enthusiasm, particularly among younger generations. An observation which invites us to rethink historical mediation, to better reconcile pleasure and rigor in the transmission of this common heritage. Because manipulating History like a toy is, after all, a way of appropriating it to better understand the present and apprehend the future.
Historical video games: diving into the past in an interactive way
Among the most popular vectors of this playful history, video games occupy a special place.(1) Blockbusters like the Assassin’s Creed series, which transports us from the Italian Renaissance to the Egypt of the pharaohs via the French Revolution , to strategy simulators like Civilization, which invite us to replay the history of humanity, these games appeal to millions of players around the world.(2)
Their strength lies in total immersion in meticulously reconstructed historical worlds, which we can explore freely and in which our actions influence the course of events. By giving the impression of walking the streets of a revolutionary Paris or rubbing shoulders with great figures of the past, these games offer a living and embodied experience of History.(3)
But this immersion has a price: that of simplification, even historical anachronism. The vision of history conveyed by a game like Civilization, for example, can be perceived as very Western-centric and linear, erasing the complexity of historical processes in favor of a biased conception of progress.(4)
An observation that calls for educational support for these practices: by contextualizing and questioning the representations conveyed by these games, we can make them formidable tools to arouse the curiosity of young people and lead them to a more critical reading of history.
Historical reconstructions: experiencing life-size history
Another way to immerse yourself in the past: historical reconstructions, which are becoming increasingly popular. Whether it involves reenacting great battles (Waterloo, Austerlitz, etc.), recreating the life of a medieval encampment or a Gallic village, these initiatives attract a large and varied audience, history enthusiasts. to families looking for an original leisure activity.(5)
By allowing people to handle period objects, put on costumes, and concretely experience ancestral ways of life, the reconstructions offer a sensory and human approach to history, complementary to book knowledge. They give flesh and presence to a past often perceived as abstract and distant.(6)
But here again, the question of historical rigor arises. Between the equipment that is often expensive to reproduce and the adaptations necessary to contemporary constraints (security, logistics, etc.), the reconstructions oscillate between concerns for authenticity and playful compromises. Not to mention the part of interpretation inherent in these practices: by replaying the past, we necessarily give a subjective reading.(7)
So many aspects to take into account to make these reconstructions real historical discovery tools, and not simple theme amusement parks. Here again, mediation is essential: by explaining the choices made and the uncertainties that remain, by inviting the public to question what is being shown to them, we can make these events great supports for a living reflection on the past.
Fictional time travel: history as a narrative playground
More imaginary but no less revealing of our relationship to the past, fictional time travel is an essential part of our popular culture. From HG Wells’ The Time Machine to the Outlander series, including countless cinematic variations on the theme, the prospect of teleporting to another era fascinates and inspires.(8)
The appeal of these fictions is largely due to the possibility they offer of projecting ourselves into a past that is both familiar and exotic, of speculating on the way in which our life could fit into another historical context. They also often play on the gap between our contemporary outlook and the mentalities of the period depicted, thus inviting a certain relativization of our points of reference.
Because beyond their dimension of escape, these stories can also nourish a reflection on the way in which we perceive and interpret the past. By featuring contemporary characters confronted with the realities of another era, they question the very possibility of an objective understanding of history, always dependent on our situated point of view.
An avenue to explore to make these fictions pure entertainment, but also supports for discussion and critical analysis. By encouraging readers or spectators to decode the representations conveyed, to put them into perspective with current historical knowledge, we can make these imaginary journeys into exciting mediation tools.
Balancing pleasure and rigor in the playful discovery of history
Ultimately, whether they take the form of pixels, period costumes or fantastical stories, these playful uses of history have in common that they shake up our relationship with the past.(1) By inviting us to literally enter into the history, to live it and replay it rather than contemplating it from a distance, they open new avenues for its transmission and appropriation.(9)
But for these paths to be truly fruitful, it is important not to leave them solely to the empire of entertainment and fiction. This is where mediation plays a key role: by supporting and enriching these practices, by linking them to historical knowledge, by inviting people to question them, it can make them formidable levers for arousing curiosity, developing critical thinking. and, ultimately, construct a finer and more embodied understanding of the past.
An approach that is all the more essential in the digital age and the profusion of content, where it becomes crucial to equip citizens, and in particular the youngest, to navigate in an informed manner in the ocean of historical representations which are offered to them. In this sense, playfulness appears more and more as an essential gateway to a demanding and lively discovery of history.(9)
In this perspective, heritage institutions have a major role to play. Many museums and historical sites have understood this well, which compete in inventiveness to offer their audiences interactive and immersive devices, from escape games to augmented reality tours.(10) A trend set to deepen in the years to come, thanks to technological progress but also a growing social demand for more participatory and embodied modes of mediation.
Manipulating history like a toy does not necessarily mean degrading or simplifying it, but perhaps, paradoxically, giving it flesh and meaning again in the eyes of the greatest number of people. On condition of making it an intelligent toy, a support for questioning and discovery, in short, a tool serving a living and critical appropriation of this past which constitutes us. A stimulating challenge for all the history tellers of the 21st century.
Illustration: AI-generated – Flavien Albarras
References
1-BAZILE, Julien, 2023. Historical video games: the past as a playground. In: GENVO, Sébastien and PHILIPPETTE, Thibault (ed.), Introduction to video game theories [en ligne]. Liège: Presses universitaire de Liège. pp. 433-442. Game / Play / Spiel. ISBN 978-2-87562-406-2. [Consulté le 19 novembre 2024].
https://books-openedition-org.iepnomade-1.grenet.fr/pulg/26449?lang=fr
2-CAILLEBOTTE, Étienne, 2024. Video games: key figures in France and around the world in 2024. BDM [en ligne]. April 5, 2024. Available at: https://www.blogdumoderateur.com/chiffres-jeu-video/ [Consulté le 19 novembre 2024].
3-BOUTONNET, Vincent, 2018. Chapter 8. Video games and historical interpretations: study of Assassin’s Creed. In: Critical thinking, teaching history and citizenship [en ligne]. The Boeck Supérieur. pp. 131‑141. [Consulté le 19 novembre 2024].
https://shs-cairn-info.iepnomade-1.grenet.fr/pensee-critique-enseignement-de-l-histoire–9782807315440-page-131?lang=fr
4-Can video games be faithful to History?, 2011. [en ligne]. Available at: https://www.lemonde.fr/week-end/article/2011/03/25/du-realisme-histoire-dans-les-jeux-video-de-strategie_1496219_1477893.html [Consulté le 19 novembre 2024].
8-PERSONNIC, Clément and KERNEC’H, Yannick, 2018. Bringing time travel into play: the video game reappropriation of a sub-genre of science fiction. ReS Futurae. Journal of Science Fiction Studies [en ligne]. December 19, 2018. No. 12. DOI 10.4000/resf.1696. [Consulté le 19 novembre 2024].
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