History of History. Mapping the Field

All historical writing is informed by theories of why historical change occurs, although some historical texts refer to theory more explicitly than others. This course seeks to explore such theories, where they come from, and how they shape the work of historians. It will do so by introducing students to key texts and concepts that have shaped and continue to shape historians’ approaches to their subjects. Students will familiarize themselves with a selection of writers from disparate schools of history and their reception by other historians.

Through close reading, the origins and intellectual trajectories of various schools of history will be explored, mapped in their broader contexts, and retraced within inter-disciplinary debates. The course’s principal aim is not only to explore key texts and schools of history but to look for concepts and terminology that can be deployed in contemporary historical research and to discuss their intellectual potentials and challenges.

The course aims at helping participants to become confident and critical readers while reducing frequent inhibitions when it comes to engaging with theoretical works, not least those originating in neighboring disciplines such as philosophy, sociology, or anthropology. In a series of seminars, the course is based on close reading of assigned texts, group discussion, and active student participation. We will deepen our understanding of how theory informs our conceptualization of history and of how major theoretical questions can inform and enrich our own writing of term papers and theses.