Biography as a Source and a Methodology in Humanities Research

This study discusses whether biography can function as a source and a methodology in humanities research. By taking biography as a source, humanities researchers can use a collection of biographical facts as research material or writing resource. Meanwhile, by taking biography as a methodology, they can apply a scientific approach to biography through their research. This is not a simple issue; thoughts on biography that emerged during the 1980s have been unable to adapt themselves to the emergence of post-structuralist approaches, while the scientific biography approach that emerged in the 1990s has similarly proven unable to adapt. Therefore, it is necessary to hold a congress to develop a contemporary biographical approach that can accommodate the influence of post-modernism [beyond modernism] and post-structuralism [beyond structuralism] in humanities research. To further this goal, this article attempts to provoke some preliminary thoughts by revealing the weaknesses of previous biography methodologies before offering alternative ideas that borrow from relevant post-structuralist theories. Keywords: biography, source, methodology, post-modernism, post-structuralism