Methodology Of History

The Need For Following The Correct And Standard Research Methodology Is Increasingly Felt When More And More Research Works And Learned Monographs Are Coming Out On History Dealing With Social, Economic, Cultural And Other Varied Aspects Of Life, And Thus The Writing Of A Critical, Unbiased And Authentic History Is The Need Of The Hour. It Has Been Well Said In This Book That The Life Breath Of History Is Interpretation, Which Also Gives A Definite Viewpoint To A Work Of History. It Lays That Objectivity, If Carried To An Extreme, Results In Dry And Lifeless Cataloguing Of Events And Subjectivity, If Carried To An Extreme, Results In A Highly Biased Work Often Divorced From Reality, And That An Ideal Work Would Be One That Combines Subjectivity With Objectivity In Due Proportion Without Upholding The One At The Cost Of The Other.The Present Book Deals With The Different Processes Involved In Writing A Good And Authentic Historical Work. Right From The Heuristic Or The Search For Reliable And Credible Historical Sources Such As Archaeological, Epigraphical, Numismatical, Literary, And Archival, It Brings Into Relief The Important Features Of Analytical Operations Aimed At Ascertaining The Credibility Of Sources By Way Of External And Internal Criticism, Synthetic Operations Aimed At Finding Out A Connected, Meaningful And, If Possible, Enlightening Account Of Facts And Forces, Interpreting Them Properly, And Finally The Exposition, In A Powerful And Impressive Style, Of The Fruits Of All This Research And Thinking. The Book Further Shows How Interpretation Itself Is Properly Done By Means Of Various Processes Such As Generalisation, The Argument From Statistics, Analogy, Hypothesis And The Like.A Special Feature Of The Work Is That The Examples Of Books, Authors, References, Etc. Are Mostly Indian. It Gives Minute Rules And Regulations Essential While Writing A Good Research Work. It Is A Constant Companion To The History Scholars In Their Research Journey While For The Teachers Of The Subject It Is An Ideal Reference Book.

No discipline has been more praised or more criticized than the writing of history. Cioero claimed that history teaches men how to live. Aris totle denied it the very name of science and regwded poetry as the higher wisdom. At various times history has been assigned a command ing or a demeaning statIUs in the hierarchy of sciences. Today one can admire the increasing precision and sophistication of the methods used by historia:ns. On the other hand, Thucydides' History of the PeZo ponesian War still serves as the ideal model of how to reconstruct the historical past. Even those who deny the possibility of an objective reconstruction of the past would themselves likie to be recorded by historians, "objectively" or not. Dislike of history and fear of its verdict are not incompatible with reverence and awe for its practitioners, the historians. So man's attitude to history is ambiguous. The controversy about history continues. Widely differing issues are at stake. Historians themselves, however, are the least engaged in the struggle. Rarely does a historian decide to open the door of his study and join in the melee about the meaning of history. More often he slams it shut and returns to his studies, oblivious of the fact that with the passage of thne the gap between his scientific work and its audience might widen. The historian does not shun the battle, he merely chooses his own battleground.

A book providing practical help to students at the graduate and postgraduate levels. What is given in the book is precise, clear and solid. The book's coverage and comprehensiveness, its scientific, analytical and critical treatment, its near perfect organization and arrangement, its clarity and easy methods of reference will make it a useful compendium for students and teachers. A teacher and lover of history the author has brought out philosophical, scientific, and ideological and linguistic perspectives to bear on the subject. Whether a student or teacher or a general reader, the manual can be expected to develop a healthy interest in history. The author has brought to bear philosophical, scientific, ideological and linguistic perspectives to bear on the subject.

This book is timely and necessary and often extremely challenging. It brings together an impressive cast of scholars, spanning several academic generations. Anyone interested in writing about the Holocaust should read this book and consider the implications of what is written here for their own work. There seems to me little doubt that Holocaust history writing stands at something of a cross roads, and the ways forward that this volume points to are extremely thought provoking. -- Tom Lawson, University of Winchester.

This treatise of historical methodology, originally published in 1950 is based upon a liberal conception of history which excludes no narrator of past events from the ranks of historians. It defines history as the accurate story which preserves the memory of the past experiences of human societies. The functionof history determines its method and provides the answer to the question: how secure is our knowledge of the past? In the author’s view, history is empirical and its results are for ever provisional. The relative merits of dogmatism and scepticism are examined and several interpretations among English historians are scrutinized.

Methods in World History is the first international volume that systematically addresses a number of methodological problems specific to the field of World History. Prompted by a lack of applicable works, the authors advocate a considerable sharpening of the tools used within the discipline. Theories constructed on poor foundations run an obvious risk of reinforcing flawed assumptions, and of propping up other, more ideological constructions. The dedicated critical approach outlined in this volume helps to mitigate such risks. Each essay addresses a particular issue, discussing its problems, giving practical examples, and offering solutions and ways of overcoming the difficulties involved. The perspectives are varied, the criticism focussed, and a common theme of coalescence is maintained throughout. This unique anthology will be of great use to advanced scholars of World History, and to students entering the field for the first time.