Two things about history (old version)
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The document discusses key principles related to history, emphasizing that all culture is influenced by earlier antecedents and that sources, while often unreliable, are essential for historical understanding. It highlights the importance of storytelling in history teaching, noting that memorable narratives overshadow complex analysis and that the focus should be on asking questions rather than providing answers. Additionally, it addresses the nature of history writing, which involves argumentation and the significance of what is omitted, as well as the impact of sources.
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Two things about history (old version)
- 1. Two Things
- 2. Two Things About History • 1. Everything has earlier antecedents. • Corollary: all culture, including religion, is syncretic; there is nothing purely original. • Second Corollary: there's no question that a historian can't complicate by talking about what led up to it. • Third Corollary: Historiography.
- 3. Two Things About History • 2. Sources lie. But they're all we have.
- 4. Two Things About History Teaching • 1. A good story is all they'll remember, not the half hour of analysis on either side of it.
- 5. Two Things About History Teaching • 2. They think it's about answers, but it's really about questions.
- 6. Two things about History Writing • 1. It looks like storytelling, but it's arguing. – Corollary: What's left out is important. – Corollary: Where you start and stop is important. • 2. Sources matter. A lot.
- 7. Sources • Background Image: "PSU Mandala Day 4 - Whole high.jpg" by Jonathan Dresner • "Two Things about History" and "Two Things About History Teaching" by Jonathan Dresner, 31 January 2004, http://hnn.us/node/3277 • "Two Things": http://www.csun.edu/~dgw61315/thetwothi ngs.html