Historiography: Development in the West-Notes
In the physical and natural sciences the empirical method (laboratory method of experiments and observation) is used to verify the available knowledge. This method allows formulating laws that remain true irrespective of the time and space. Those laws can be tested and proved repeatedly.
In historical research it may not be possible to use the method of laboratory experiments and observation. This is so because we were not present in the historical time and space and the historical events cannot be recreated. Also in history it is not possible to formulate laws that remain true irrespective of the time and space.
To begin, we need an expert who knows the language and script of a historical document in order to read it and understand its meaning. Also, the experts can examine the authenticity of the document by using criteria such as lettering style, author's style of writing, manufacturing date and type of paper, stamps of authority, etc. Such a document is further scrutinised by a historian with the help of relevant historical references.
Methods of various disciplines are useful in historical research. For example, Archaeology, Archival Science, Manuscriptology, Epigraphy (Study of inscriptions), Analysis of lettering style, Linguistics, Numismatics (Study of coins), Genealogy (Study of lineage), etc.
1.1 Tradition of Historiography:
We have learnt about the historical research method, critically examining the historical sources and writing the historical narrative. The writing of critical historical narrative is known as 'Historiography'. A scholor who writes such a narrative is a historian.
The historian cannot include every past event in his narrative. The inclusion and interpretation of historical events by the historian often depends on the conceptual framework adopted by him. His style of writing is determined by that conceptual framework.
The tradition of writing historical narrative, that is historiography, was not prevalent in the ancient societies of the world. However, that does not mean that they were not aware of the historical time or were not eager to know about it. Ancient people also felt the need of passing on the stories of the life and valour of the ancestors to the next generation. Ancient communities all over the world used various means like cave paintings, story-telling, singing songs and ballads, etc. for this purpose. traditional means are looked upon as the These sources of history in the modem historiography.
1.2 Modern Historiography
Four main characteristics of modern historiography:
(1) Its method is based on scientific principles. It begins with the formation of relevant questions.
(2) These questions are anthropocentric. It means that these questions are about the deeds of the members of ancient human societies of a particular period. History does not suggest any interrelation between the Divine and human deeds.
(3) Answers to these questions are supported by reliable evidence.
(4) History presents a graph of mankind's journey with the help of past human deeds.
It is said that the modern historiography with above characteristics has its roots in the ancient Greek historical writings. 'History' is originally a Greek term. Herodotus, the Greek historian of the fifth century B.C.E. used it first for his book entitled, 'The Histories".
1.3 Development of Scientific Perspective in Europe and Historiography
Till the eighteenth century C.E. Europe had achieved a remarkable progress in the fields of Philosophy and Science. Scholars by then had come to believe in the possibility of studying the social and historical truths by applying scientific methods. Now the philosophical discussions focused more and more on the objectivity in history and historiography.
Prior to the eighteenth century all European universities were interested only in the philosophical discourses revolving around Divine phenomena. However, gradually this scenario began to change. In 1737 CE. the Gottingen University was founded in Germany. This university for the first time had an independent department of history. Later, other German universities also became centres of historical studies.
1.4 Notable Scholars
The contributions of many scholars are important in the development of historiography. Let us have a look at the contributions of the few notable scholars.
René Descartes (1596-1650): Rene Descartes was the foremost among scholars who insisted on verifying the reliability of historical documents by critically René Descartes examining them. Among the rules given by him in his book, 'Discourse on the method', the following is supposed to have a great impact on the scientific method of research Never to accept anything for true till all grounds of doubt are excluded.
Voltaire (1694-1778) Voltaire's original name was François-Marie Arouet He was French. He opined that along with objective truth and chronology of historical events considering social traditions, trade, Voltaire economy, agriculture, etc. was also equally important in historiography. It gave rise to the thought that understanding all aspects of human life is important for history writing. Thus, it is said that Voltaire was the founder of modern historiography.
Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831): Hegel was a German philosopher. He insisted that the historical reality should be presented in a logical manner. To him the timeline of historical events was indicative of progress. He also thought that the presentation of history is bound to change over time as new evidence would come forth. With Hegel's philosophy many scholars were convinced that historical methods were not of lesser quality though they differed from scientific methods. The collection of his lectures and articles.
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