Major Approaches to Major Approaches to Interpreting HistoryInterpreting History

Dr. John F. Chuchiak IV;Dr. John F. Chuchiak IV;

rev. by Javier Erguetarev. by Javier Ergueta

December, 2013December, 2013

Historians commonly Historians commonly recognize that, by recognize that, by themselves, individual themselves, individual historical facts are not historical facts are not particularly particularly meaningful. meaningful.

Such facts will only Such facts will only become useful when become useful when assembled into an assembled into an interpretive whole, interpretive whole, and different and different approaches to approaches to assembling evidence assembling evidence are understood as are understood as particular particular historiographical historiographical schoolsschools..

Political HistoryPolitical History

• Diplomatic historyDiplomatic history• ““Whig” historyWhig” history• ““Great Man” theoryGreat Man” theory

Political historyPolitical history is is the narrative and the narrative and analysis of political analysis of political events, ideas, events, ideas, movements, and movements, and leaders.leaders.

It is usually structured It is usually structured around the nation around the nation state. state.

Diplomatic historyDiplomatic history focuses on politics, focuses on politics, politicians and other high politicians and other high rulers and views them as rulers and views them as being the driving force of being the driving force of continuity and change in continuity and change in history. history.

This type of This type of political political historyhistory is the study of the is the study of the conduct of international conduct of international relations between states relations between states or across state or across state boundaries over time. boundaries over time.

This is the most common This is the most common form of history and is form of history and is often the classical and often the classical and popular belief of what popular belief of what history should be.history should be.

Whig historiographyWhig historiography perceives the past as a perceives the past as a teleological progression teleological progression toward the present. toward the present.

In general, Whig historians In general, Whig historians look for and favour the look for and favour the rise of constitutional rise of constitutional government, personal government, personal freedoms and scientific freedoms and scientific progress in any historical progress in any historical period. period.

The term is often used The term is often used pejoratively to denote any pejoratively to denote any historian that adopts such historian that adopts such positions, but it also positions, but it also connotes a specific set of connotes a specific set of British historians who British historians who embodied embodied WhigWhig ideals. ideals.

The The Great man Great man theorytheory is a theory is a theory held by some that held by some that aims to explain aims to explain history by the history by the impact of "Great impact of "Great men", or heroes: men", or heroes: highly influential highly influential individuals, either individuals, either from personal from personal charisma, genius charisma, genius intellects, or great intellects, or great political impact.political impact.

For example, a scholarly For example, a scholarly follower of the Great Man follower of the Great Man theory would be likely to theory would be likely to study the Second World study the Second World War by focusing on the War by focusing on the big personalities of the big personalities of the conflict — Sir Winston conflict — Sir Winston Churchill, Adolf Hitler, Churchill, Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Franklin Benito Mussolini, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Joseph Delano Roosevelt, Joseph Stalin, Hideki Tojo, etc. — Stalin, Hideki Tojo, etc. — and view all of the and view all of the historical events as being historical events as being tied directly to their own tied directly to their own individual decisions and individual decisions and orders.orders.

It is often linked to 19th It is often linked to 19th century commentator and century commentator and historian Thomas Carlyle, historian Thomas Carlyle, who commented that "who commented that "The The history of the world is but history of the world is but the biography of great menthe biography of great men." ."

The Great Man approach to The Great Man approach to history was most popular history was most popular with professional historians with professional historians in the 19th century; a in the 19th century; a popular work of this school is popular work of this school is the the Encyclopedia Britannica Encyclopedia Britannica Eleventh EditionEleventh Edition (1911) (1911)

This heroic view of history This heroic view of history was also strongly endorsed was also strongly endorsed by some philosophical by some philosophical figures such as Hegel, figures such as Hegel, Nietzsche, and Spengler, but Nietzsche, and Spengler, but it fell out of favor after World it fell out of favor after World War II.War II.

Social HistorySocial History

• Marxist/marxianMarxist/marxian• Quantitative/CliometricsQuantitative/Cliometrics

Social historySocial history is a area is a area of historical study of historical study considered by some to considered by some to be a social science that be a social science that attempts to view attempts to view historical evidence from historical evidence from the point of view of the point of view of developing social trends.developing social trends.

In this view, it may In this view, it may include areas of include areas of economic history, legal economic history, legal history and the analysis history and the analysis of other aspects of civil of other aspects of civil society that show the society that show the evolution of social evolution of social norms, behaviors and norms, behaviors and more. more.

It is distinguished from It is distinguished from political history, military political history, military history and the so-called history and the so-called history of great men.history of great men.

An example of social An example of social history can be seen in the history can be seen in the American Civil Rights American Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. and 1960s.

Typical history would focus Typical history would focus on the who, what, when on the who, what, when and where; whereas social and where; whereas social history focuses on the history focuses on the causes of the movement causes of the movement itself. itself.

Social historians would Social historians would pose such questions as, pose such questions as, "Why did the movement "Why did the movement come about when it did?”come about when it did?”

This approach is favored This approach is favored by some scholars because by some scholars because it allows for a discussion of it allows for a discussion of sometimes less studied sometimes less studied aspects. aspects.

MarxistMarxist or or historical historical materialist materialist historiographyhistoriography is a is a school of historiography school of historiography influenced by Marxism. influenced by Marxism.

The chief tenets of The chief tenets of Marxist historiography are Marxist historiography are the centrality of social the centrality of social class and economic class and economic constraints in determining constraints in determining historical outcomes.historical outcomes.

Marxist historiography Marxist historiography has made contributions to has made contributions to the methodology of the methodology of “history from below”, and “history from below”, and the history of the working the history of the working class, and oppressed class, and oppressed nationalities. nationalities.

Strict Marxist history is Strict Marxist history is teleologicalteleological: it posits a : it posits a direction of history, direction of history, towards an end state of towards an end state of history as classless history as classless human society. human society.

Its aim is to bring those Its aim is to bring those oppressed by history to oppressed by history to self-consciousness, and to self-consciousness, and to arm them with tactics and arm them with tactics and strategies from history: it strategies from history: it is both a historical and a is both a historical and a liberatory project.liberatory project.

Historians who use Historians who use Marxist methodology, but Marxist methodology, but disagree with the disagree with the mainstream of Marxism, mainstream of Marxism, often describe themselves often describe themselves as as marxistmarxist historians historians (with a lowercase (with a lowercase MM). ).

Methods from Marxist Methods from Marxist historiography, such as historiography, such as class analysis, can be class analysis, can be divorced from the divorced from the liberatory intent of liberatory intent of Marxist historiography; Marxist historiography; such practitioners often such practitioners often refer to their work as refer to their work as marxianmarxian or or MarxianMarxian..

Quantitative HistoryQuantitative History is is an approach to historical an approach to historical research that makes use research that makes use of quantitative, statistical of quantitative, statistical and computer tools. and computer tools.

It is considered a branch It is considered a branch of of social historysocial history and has and has favorite journals, such as favorite journals, such as Historical Methods,Historical Methods, Social Social Science History,Science History, and the and the Journal of Interdisciplinary Journal of Interdisciplinary History.History.

CliometricsCliometrics refers to the refers to the systematic use of systematic use of economic theory and economic theory and econometric techniques econometric techniques to study economic to study economic history. history.

The term was originally The term was originally coined by Jonathan R.T. coined by Jonathan R.T. Hughes and Stanley Hughes and Stanley Reiter in 1960 and refers Reiter in 1960 and refers to Clio, who was the muse to Clio, who was the muse of history and heroic of history and heroic poetry in Greek poetry in Greek mythology. mythology.

Cultural HistoryCultural History

• Art historyArt history• Annales SchoolAnnales School

Cultural historyCultural history (from (from the German term the German term KulturgeschichteKulturgeschichte), at least ), at least in its common definition in its common definition since the 1970s, often since the 1970s, often combines the approaches combines the approaches of anthropology and of anthropology and history to look at popular history to look at popular cultural traditions and cultural traditions and cultural interpretations of cultural interpretations of historical experience. historical experience.

Jacob BurckhardtJacob Burckhardt (1818– (1818– 1897) was a Swiss historian 1897) was a Swiss historian of art and culture, fields of art and culture, fields which he helped found. which he helped found.

""The great discoverer of The great discoverer of the age of the the age of the Renaissance, he first Renaissance, he first showed how a period showed how a period should be treated in its should be treated in its entirety, with regard not entirety, with regard not only for its painting, only for its painting, sculpture and architecture, sculpture and architecture, but for the social but for the social institutions of its daily life institutions of its daily life as well…as well…””

Burckhardt's best known Burckhardt's best known work is work is The Civilization of The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italythe Renaissance in Italy (1860).(1860).

Cultural history overlaps in Cultural history overlaps in its approaches with the its approaches with the French movements of French movements of histoire des mentalitéshistoire des mentalités and the so-called and the so-called new new historyhistory, and in the U.S. it , and in the U.S. it is closely associated with is closely associated with the field of the field of American American studiesstudies. .

Most often the focus is on Most often the focus is on phenomena shared by non-phenomena shared by non-elite groups in a society, elite groups in a society, such as: carnival, festival, such as: carnival, festival, and public rituals; and public rituals; performance traditions; performance traditions; cultural evolutions in cultural evolutions in human relations (ideas, human relations (ideas, sciences, arts, techniques); sciences, arts, techniques); and cultural expressions of and cultural expressions of social movements such as social movements such as nationalism. nationalism.

The The Annales SchoolAnnales School The The Annales SchoolAnnales School is a is a

school of historical writing school of historical writing named after the French named after the French scholarly journal scholarly journal Annales Annales d'histoire économique et d'histoire économique et socialesociale where it was first where it was first expounded. expounded.

Annales school history Annales school history incorporated social incorporated social scientific methods into scientific methods into history.history.

The Annales was founded The Annales was founded and edited by Marc Bloch and edited by Marc Bloch and Lucien Febvre in and Lucien Febvre in 1929, while they were 1929, while they were teaching at the University teaching at the University of Strasbourg, France. of Strasbourg, France.

These authors quickly These authors quickly became associated with became associated with the distinctive Annales the distinctive Annales approach, which approach, which combined geography, combined geography, history, and the history, and the sociological approaches sociological approaches to produce an approach to produce an approach which rejected the which rejected the predominant emphasis predominant emphasis on politics, diplomacy on politics, diplomacy and war of many 19th and war of many 19th century historians.century historians.

Instead, they pioneered Instead, they pioneered an approach to a study of an approach to a study of long-term historical long-term historical structures (structures (la longue la longue duréedurée) over events.) over events.

Geography, material Geography, material culture, and what later culture, and what later Annalistes called Annalistes called mentalités,mentalités, or the or the psychology of the epoch, psychology of the epoch, are also typical. are also typical.

Georges DubyGeorges Duby, wrote , wrote that the history he taught: that the history he taught: ““……was reluctant to give a was reluctant to give a simple accounting of simple accounting of events, but strived on the events, but strived on the contrary …to observe the contrary …to observe the long and medium-term long and medium-term evolution of economy, evolution of economy, society and civilizationsociety and civilization."."