Crossing the boundaries of history: exploring oral history in researching Palestinian women in the mandate period [1 ]

This article explores the promise of, as well as the methodological and pedagogical problems inherent in, the use of oral history in research on Palestinian women, focusing on the author's personal experiences in her field research.The author critiques the field of history - specifically, Middle East history - for its neglect in utilizing oral history and training historians in it, particularly as it relates to Third World women.Oral history is not merely a choice of methodology, but rather, in many cases, a decision of whether or not to record their history at all.Historians need to move beyond the boundaries that rigidly define their discipline and incorporate methodologies of other fields in order to produce more inclusive history.