History’s Story
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Theme
History doesn't just happen: our knowledge of the past is fashioned by historians working within our culture.
Summaries
There's Method
Historians use rational methods that dissect the past into more comprehensible parts.
What is Truth?
Historical views are shaped by perspectives of writers within culture.
Keywords
There's Method
Western civilization, humans, history, historical method, causation, significance, sources (primary, secondary, tertiary), chronological, geographical, topical categories, prehistory, science and technology, economics, politics, social structures, culture, philosophy, religion,Western, Eastern [Oriental--now archaic], western Europe, BC, AD
What is Truth?
subjectivity, objectivity, bias, prejudice, fact, opinion, myth ,revisionism, relativism, supremacy, diversity, universalism, acculturation, acculturation, particularism, syncretism, supernatural
Review Questions
- How do historians study and divide up the past?
- How can we evaluate history?
Other Questions
- If all historical writing is based on choices, how do we make the best choices?
- How do “supremacies” describe the methods and results of power over people and nature as they affect history?
- How do “diversities” reflect the various peoples and their ideas who have shaped the past?
