La Société des Dix, Beginnings and Debates on History
To understand the birth and evolution of the Société des Dix and the Cahiers des Dix, this article asks three questions. First, who were the members of the Society and how did they get to know each other ? Second, what was the context and purpose of the founding of these Cahiers in 1936 ? Finally, what was the conception of history conveyed in the journal and what did the terms ‘‘large’’ and ‘‘small’’ mean to the founders ? In the 1940s and 1950s, a new generation of historians came on the scene and referred to their predecessors as amateurs, or even ‘‘antique dealers.’’ Should we see in this a quarrel between the Ancients and the Moderns, a new relationship with the University or the premises of a sensitivity close to that of the École des Annales ? The analysis reveals that the Société des Dix has been active in the disciplinarization of history in Quebec through the founding of its journal, its links with academia and its participation in debates on history and historians.