Professor Bristol asked our class on
the first day, “What is history?” At
first, I didn’t understand why Professor Bristol was asking us this
question. I thought that it was too easy
of a question for a class of graduate students.
After reading History’s Babel,
however, I now better understand both the significance of this question, which
has no easy answer, as well as the direction in which Professor Bristol intends
to lead the class by introducing its proposal.
History’s Babel shows the
reader that not only did the jobs within the historical enterprise evolve from
1880-1940, but also that the relationship that history bears with other
subjects, such as political science and economics, was in a constant state of
flux. Therefore, even if one were to limit
“history” in our original question to the “school subject” rather than the
entire enterprise, it is not an easy question to answer because it is unclear
whether or not, or to what extent, the subject of history should contain elements
of what are today considered separate subjects, such as economics or political
science.
I believe that our original
question can be thought of as being on only one side of a coin. The question on the other side would be, “Why
do we study history?” This is also a
question that Townsend touches upon in two ways. The first is when he discusses the divide
between literary historians and scientific historians. Are historians meant to “reflect upon
history’s deeper meanings” (19) in a literary sense, or are they meant to provide
concrete, tangible discoveries like a scientist? Or perhaps even both? Another way in which Townsend touches upon
this question is when he discusses some of the justifications provided for
teaching history in pre-collegiate schools.
Can the study of history be justified by the fact that it teaches civic
virtues and “is a form of mental discipline that could teach good judgment”
(56)? Or can it do even more? I look forward to exploring some of these
questions with our class tomorrow evening.
I am glad you brought up these questions because I found that I was considering the same things while I was reading and also reflected on the question asked in class. Especially since the question of "What is History," has actually been asked in many of my classes, again with many answers that basically state the same idea but very in specificity. However, I now find myself questioning whether creating answers to these questions is actually helping or harming people in the History profession or those studying it. I think people have this need to define concepts and create categories in order to determine what is inclusive or exclusive. People want to belong and by creating categories and definitions of these terms, they are able to determine where they want to be. But I think that these categories are limiting and destructive to the profession as a whole even though, at this point, it may be necessary to some extent. I think Townsend was maybe showing that point whether he meant to or not. Why do Historians need to do one thing? I like how you gave the possibility of the profession being able to have both literary and scientific aspects.
ReplyDeleteHey Brittney! I'm glad that you were glad! I read your blog as well and I really appreciated the fact that you said that you were both encouraged and discouraged after reading about the job prospects mentioned in the book. If I had had more room to write, I was going to pretty much say that exact same thing! It was really fascinating reading about the way in which the PhD's being awarded grew at such a tremendous rate. On our first day of class, I felt as if I had stepped into some sort of coliseum of academia and was in competition with my classmates to see who would go on to be given the possibility of earning a PhD. I was aware already of other jobs within the historical enterprise, such as working in a museum, but this book reinforced my understanding of the historical enterprise. Still, I'm sure that there are only so many of those jobs available. But it would be wrong to look at our class as a competitive environment. The education we will take away from the class is more valuable, I believe, than the job prospects, and we can all benefit from it equally.
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