Between culture and nature : some considerations on the perspective of life history

Life history is a term that in the historiography is usually assigned to the Italian school of micro-history. However, it is in fact a concept typical for the natural sciences, where it is a framework designed to examine life history strategies as well as life cycles. Analysis of life history has become the subject of numerous studies around the world and has been gaining in popularity in social sciences. The author presents life history as a possible research strategy for historical studies which allows the incorporation of both natural and cultural approaches. The author draws inspiration for the perspectives of life history research from the examples of recent research into the history of modern Poland.