The Mainstream of Historical Writing and Research - Essay Example

I. Select and Explain some dominant THEMES in the mainstream of historical writing and research Historians usually categorize themselves with respectto the time period they study. However, apart from time and place, themes hold a prime importance for historians. Political history is one such theme, which no longer holds a place of dominance a present. Political history refers to study of the “formal organization of power in society” (ch 3). Political history might include a wide variety of elements. Some historians might be inclined to the period of Renaissance and French Revolution and the study of the European powers’ growth during these periods. ‘Diplomatic history’ has emerged as a branch of this theme where people found the study of political history useful to study the contemporary wars. However the fulfillment of studying political history depends upon economic and social history. During the later half of the 19th century Western Europe and America were undergoing a transformation in social and economic scenario. The historical study practiced during that time was incapable of addressing and explaining the changes. Marx’ study with respect to the historical importance of the means of production and analysis of classes had already been popularized among the literate class. The First World War had already curbed the rise of the nation-state, a popular theme for historians in the nineteenth century. Therefore the narrowness of political history had to be dealt with as it faced constant criticisms. The Annales School of France had a lot to teach regarding the increased scope of history to address the contemporary issues related to social and economic spheres. Biography is the third most important theme studied by historians. The conventional theories of history in academic arena were attached as they lacked studies of the life and works of the elites like the founders of foreign policy, politicians who encouraged fundamental changes and led the revolutions. Gradually study of their lives attracted people’s curiosity. However such biographies in those times were not popularized with the intentions of revealing the truth always but to present an ideal image of a public figure for educational purposes. During the Victorian period, the biographies were studied by the heirs of the important figures and the most suitable form of study was “a large-scale ‘Life’, based almost exclusively on the subject’s own papers” (ch3). The fourth theme studied is “social history” which emphasizes upon the society as a whole. This includes components like “poverty, ignorance, insanity and disease”. Historians dealt with the problems posed before the society in general. Social history also involves day-to-day living at home, community and workplace related issues. The fifth theme, economic history relates the “material and the mental worlds” (ch3). This looks into “reconstruction of production, exchange and consumption” (ch3). This theme is the first area, which has been, popularized apart from popular history. The sixth theme relates to unraveling the mental set up of people in the past where their psychological status has been analyzed inclusive of religion, political ideas and mentality of the mass. Although it seems quite an impossible in terms of coverage but world history is the seventh important theme, which predominates. Local history forms the eighth theme, which is discovered recently, and this was popularized essentially in England. In studying different communities the connection between microhistory and total (or local) history becomes important. The connection between global and local history is also important to be established by historians. II. Select, explain, and COMMENT upon some theories of history The need to incorporate theories into historical studies, compare and synthesize them and empirically validate the same have become a useful an important exercise for historians. Theories tend to resolve many problems and answers several questions with the help of generalizations. Empirical analysis helps in deciding the acceptance or rejection of a theory. However certain points like safeguarding against too much application of theory and its relevance to the historical question under research are to be considered properly before using a theory. History should ideally concern individuals and in this respect Marx’s theories are most relevant and applicable. Such theories help in analyzing everything in the social context, define an individual’s restrains to freedom and abilities. Marx’s deterministic model suggests firstly, that the “forces of production are by no means confined to the instruments of production and the brawn of the workers” (ch8). Secondly, Marx keeps enough space for the human creativity to fit in and emphasizes upon its essence without which one would be “slaves to the natural world” (ch.8). He also suggests that political structure and principles could not be studied without understanding of economic framework. Marx also leaves scope for reversal of direction and builds a three-tier model, which would permit such influences. Marx observes, “According to the materialistic conception of history, the ultimately determining element in history is the production and reproduction of real life” (ch.8). Based on the frameworks of different societies Marx has categorized the history into period – Ancient Society comprising of Greece and Rome, Capitalist Society, which developed primarily in Europe and especially as a result of the French Revolution and Socialist Society, which would gradually take the place of Capitalist Society. Thus his theories throw light on the social structures and might be related to the transformation taking place in the socio economic scenario. His theories therefore relate to the problems of individuals and how they might affect the society at large. Theories of Marx therefore can be applied to almost all levels of social constructs. (ch8) Marx’s theories are relevant with respect to several social aspects like race, gender etc. Postcolonial study is another important stream of study in history. For instance Foucault is a remarkable postcolonial theory who says that “language is not just one variant of power; it is the most important kind of power” (ch.10). Another powerful historian is Said whose views reflect that when one culture tries to symbolize or represent another, the role of language as a source of power becomes stronger because one language would then attempt to put down the “Other”. The “Other” is a cultural creation, which stands for the “pathological opposite of one’s own culture” (ch10). His theories represent Orientalism and pervaded the opinions of critics about the world of Arabs. Said declared Orientalism as “a science of imperialism” and he attempted to decrease the impact of colonial bindings on people’s perception and relationships. This is the prime necessity for the progress of a less development war affected colonial nation. One such bindings is that of race which were encouraged during colonial era such that the natives would feel lesser in front of the colonizers (ch10). Marx’s theory with respect to class was based upon the role played by an individual in the process of production, that is in economic context and this essentially highlights the essence of capitalism and promotes the division of labor, which is applied even in topical times. Again the division of labor also promotes the conflict of classes. His attempt was to make the masses aware of the forces, which were at work in the society around them. This way the people would be able to identify when and how they should stand against the capitalist system. Marx’s position suggests that the association between lords and peasants was marked with tension and this tension brought about the social alteration in the Middle Ages. Following Marx’s theories therefore the borderline between social and economic history becomes indistinguishable. Here also lies the attraction of the “total history”. Yet the diversity of Marx’s theories and studies are noteworthy. (ch8) One might observe that academic stream is categorized on the basis of virtues of theory. One thing that still remained unexplained was the long process of industrialization and the gradual growth of the industries and such other aspects. As the number of questions grows further so does the need for more theories and hence further empirical proofs which would answer the question. Thus Marxist historiography has brought into focus the source of such questions of history, which might be useful and open new doors in the academic field of study. Work Cited Tosh, John. The Pursuit of History, 5th ed. Longman, 2010 Read More