This paper analyses some historiographical aspects of Hans Ulrich Gumbrecht's work, particularly his theory of modernity and its consequences to the writing of history and its disciplinary self-conscious. Finally, it is proposed a reinterpretation of the history of historiography based on the distinction between cultures of presence and cultures of meaning. It is argued that despite the fact that the elements of meaning are predominant in the constitution of modern historiography, the forces acting in its constitution cannot be explained without typical elements of a culture of presence.
modernity; Historiography; post-modernity; Gumbrecht