Understanding History and Historians
In his book, "History and Historians: A histographical introduction", Mark T Gilderhus gives a comprehensive and thorough description of the thinking of westerners concerning history and the way it has evolved from the ancient time to the present history of today. In his book, Gilderhus discusses the major issues and challenges that people faced and continue to experience in history in areas related to philosophy of history, historical methodology and historiography to mention a few. While discussing the main issues and the different areas covered in the book, Gilderhus maintains a sense of balance in the way he approaches the topics making the book ideal to all readers regardless of their level of education.
In chapter one, Gilderhus gives a brief but detailed explanation of the historical thinking of the westerners in ancient periods of history. He also introduces some of the problems that people encountered and challenges faced while trying to understand historical methods, historiography and the philosophy of history[1]. In this chapter, the author goes into detail to discuss why it is important for people to study history and what it can achieve. Among the issues discussed is the need for curiosity. If one is to understand what history is about, they must possess the curiosity and desire to know why things they are the way they are and where they originated from. They must also desire to bring order to the society they live in and the world at large. As history has it, everything has a past and an origin[2]. To solve the issues causing disorder in the world, one must study where things went wrong so as to identify what need to be done so as to rectify them and reinstate order.
Those intending to study history must also learn to note the cause and effect of certain occurrences and how they relate to one another. Understanding the cause will help determine how the effect can be prevented or encouraged depending on its outcome[3]. History also helps in identifying the origin of a people, their culture and traditions and the view they hold towards life. It also helps human beings to better understand the repercussions of their actions and what they ought to do so as to ensure that they do not cause more harm than good to the society around them and the world at large.
In chapter two, Gilderhus discusses the topic on the beginnings of historical consciousness. For most philosophers and historians, the issue of historical consciousness has proved to be a difficult notion to explain with most drawing the conclusion that Historical consciousness has always been in existence[4]. In his book, Gilderhus points out that the telling of past events, often referred to as historiography, and has its origin to a period as far back as the time before writing sources were in use. Though this may be the case, modern westerners have a different notion of history. They are of the belief that history comprises of more than stories of forefathers being retold with emphasis of their accomplishments and actions they engaged in. they are of the opinion that in the mid nineteen century, a new relationship of how people relate to the past was revealed through historicism (Gilderhus, 2009).
Historicism is considered to be the historicization of all the experience and knowledge that human beings possess of the spiritual world[5]. The belief was strengthened by the values that the people held in various matters and their ancient heritage as a people. In this chapter, Gilderhus discusses how various theologians viewed history and the consequences they thought history could have on the world and other issues. Troeltsh for example believed that historicism was a rather specific way of modern thought. He believed that historicism would eventually lead to all value systems being destroyed because people’s way of thinking and historical scholarships tended to be inherently relativist in nature. It was therefore responsible for the rise and fall of empires, values, ideals and modes of thought[6].
Within historiography, the development of historicism has been expressed as an important element in professional development. Typically, it comprises of the various stages of that the Jesuits, the Maurists and the Italian humanists used to analyze sources in the fifteenth and seventeenth century[7]. In this chapter of his book, Gilderhus points out that the modern view we have of history is not universal and this was the case even in the past. Various changes occurred in the past that led to a break in older traditions that led to developments that drove people to creating some distance from their past. Historians were able to view history not as a predecessor of the present but rather as something that was different fundamentally and needed to be understood on its own[8].
In chapter three, Gilderhus discusses the topic on historical consciousness in the modern age. In this chapter, the author gives a detailed description of how people’s awareness and attitude towards history began to shape up and change. People begun to question the way they viewed and regarded history and started evaluating other ways of viewing and understanding their past[9]. It is a common notion that people think history has always been studied the same as it is now. However, in this chapter, Gilderhus explains the various changes that have occurred in the methods used to study history over time. An example is the change in the way people viewed religion in relation to what history used to teach about God.
Changes in the methods used and approaches that people took to understand history led to them questioning and attacking Christianity and its authority. When the study of history broadened to include the study of the purpose of God, the history of the Greeks and the history of the Roman Catholic, people developed different views of what factors like religion represented. The people became more enlightened and therefore demanded better explanation of things that were taught to them. This brought about the rise of New Science which was intended to correct the exaggerated claims that had been introduced by natural science[10].
Philosophers like Rene Descartes went to the extent of disenfranchising the field of history claiming that it was not a reliable source of knowledge. His argument was based on the fact that the information given by traditional belief and notions was unreliable since it could have been based on make belief or personal fantasies[11]. As demonstrated by Voltaire and Machiavelli, people held little regard for whether what they said was right or wrong. Hegel also believed that human beings followed or were guided by a spirit that led them to their humanity. Gilderhus was able to show the views that people had towards history and the changes that have transpired over time.
In chapter four, Gilderhus discusses the topic on the Philosophy of History: Speculative Approaches. In this topic, history is best explained through the speculations that various philosophers had of the past and the impact they had on society[12]. The philosophers tried to have a better understanding of history and the nature of the historical knowledge that they possessed. Their reflections on history are classified together to create the body of work that is often referred to as the philosophy of history. It basically comprises of arguments and analysis made by theologians, idealists and logicians.
In this chapter, Gilderhus presents history as a comprehensible process of structures and events that are used to interpret the philosophy of history. Historians took on a speculative approach as a way of discerning and embracing the various patterns and the directions in which human history unfolded. Through it, they believed that they would have a better understanding of the back and forth historical developments that occurred in their historical developments[13]. Philosophers like Hegel and Vico raised various questions in an attempt to understand the meaning of history and the large direction it took. St. Augustine in his ‘City of God’ used the perspective of Christianity to give his interpretation of human history. His beliefs and views towards history went against the perceptions that others had where recurrent phases of the cosmos caused destruction and regeneration.
Through Christianity, St. Augustine fueled the speculation that history operated in a determined direction and that it did not move in circles. Such a realization was important in changing the way human beings thought and how they viewed the world around them[14]. In his work, St. Augustine combined both philosophy and theology to create a better understanding of history. His work is an example of the various speculative approaches that philosophers took in a bid to better understands history.
In chapter five, Gilderhus discusses the topic on the philosophy of history: Analytical approaches. The approaches led to various internal micro evolutions which divided history into several phases. Among them was the quasi platonic form of realism which had been introduced by Russell and Moore to act as alternatives to idealism (Gilderhus, 2009). They turned people away from their initial approach of philosophy which proposed a grand system to a method of giving narrow discussions that were specific and probed and isolated issues in a manner that was precise and more detailed.
The propositions were however abandoned later on and people adopted the use of common sense as it appeared to give a more realistic form of philosophy. Analytic philosophy therefore resulted to using a more developed way of thinking in the form of logical atomism[15]. It was later replaced by logical positivism which was popularized by Ayer, a British philosopher. Later on, the analytic movement had to let go of their linguistic forms and adopt the philosophy of language. They later adopted metaphysics which paved the way for the different types of sub disciplines of philosophy. Even though the post linguistic analytical philosophy could not be defined by a specific set of philosophical interests or views, it greatly emphasized thoroughness and precision when discussing broad topics related to history[16].
In chapter six, Gilderhus discusses the topic on reading, writing and research. In this chapter, he discusses the various methods that people engaged in when reading, writing or conducting research on history (Gilderhus, 2009). Most philosophers read material that already existed and then evaluated what it entailed. After enlightenment, people no longer openly accepted what they were told and took it as the truth. As a result, they would read and then evaluate the information to see if it made sense and whether it was applicable in the environment they lived in. Rather than accepting facts that could not be verified, people started questioning information related to history and tried to evaluate whether it was reliable or not[17].
When it came to writing and research, philosophers often went over ideas entertained by other historians and philosophers. They would then evaluate their work and then come up with their own ideas. Some would agree with the work of other philosophers and make improvements or disagree with it completely and proposed an alternative approach (Gilderhus, 2009). The research would therefore involve going over the work of other philosophers and then comparing all the different materials used. The philosopher would then come up with a personal philosophy which would then be evaluated by other historians to determine its authenticity and whether it could be used as a reliable source. In the case of information that was questionable, historians would conduct further research in a bid to create better understanding and better explain the source and relevance of various forms of history. In doing so, they would end up with historical information that was factual and gave an acceptable account of what happened in history and how and why it happened and the repercussions that followed as a result.
In chapter seven, Gilderhus discusses the topic on professional history in recent times. Analyzing history involves investigating contrasting facts and ideas that historians have created to explain what happened in the past, how and why it happened. The facts from various philosophers are compared against each other to see which account of history is more detailed and more reliable. Even though some accounts of history cannot be authenticated as either being true or false, such accounts are rarely done away with. Modern historians use such accounts as a source of further research which often results to more findings and a better understanding of the past. Rather than doing away with historical facts that do not add up, modern historians take it upon themselves to conduct further studies so as to explain how such notions and beliefs came into existence.
In recent times, history is no longer viewed as a single entity but is seen to be influenced by other factors that occur in society. As a result, historians draw up on other social sciences such as economics, politics and philosophy and try to explain how they influence history. Modern historians use ancient philosopher’s work to give insights on the cultural context of time [18]. They are also used to dismiss or verify historical accounts that were made earlier by reviewing recent scholarships and sources that are newly discovered. Historians also work in university centers, museums and archival centers where they either teach or grow their knowledge of history. Their commitment and continuous studies into the field of history is an indication that a lot needs to be learnt before people can completely understand history.
References
Gilderhus, Mark . History and historians: A historiographical introduction. Upper Saddle River (N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. 2009.
[1] Gilderhus, Mark . History and historians: A historiographical introduction. Upper Saddle River (N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. 2009.
[2] ibid
[3] ibid
[4] ibid
[5] ibid
[6] ibid
[7] ibid
[8] ibid.
[9] ibid
[10] ibid
[11] ibid
[12] ibid
[13] ibid
[14] ibid
[15] ibid
[16] ibid
[17] ibid
[18] ibid
