Description
Book SynopsisThis survey introduces readers to the major themes, figures, traditions and theories in Western historical thought, tracing its evolution from biblical times to the present. It discusses conceptions of and approaches to the human past in the ancient, medieval, early modern and modern West eras.
Trade Review"This companion is expansive in its subject and links with other disciplines, such as ancient history and the classics, anthropology, Biblical studies and theology… It covers many expected subjects, but also explores lesser-known areas of historical interest as well as the challenges to historical thought in the twenty-first century that will continue to make this companion a useful library resource."
Reference ReviewsTable of ContentsList of Contributors viii
Acknowledgments xii
Introduction: The Cultural History of Historical Thought 1
Lloyd Kramer and Sarah Maza
PART I THE PRE-MODERN ORIGINS OF WESTERN HISTORICAL THOUGHT
1 Historiography in Ancient Israel 15
John Van Seters
2 Historical Thought in Ancient Greece 35
Philip A. Stadter
3 Historical Thought in Ancient Rome 60
J. E. Lendon
4 Historical Thought in Medieval Europe 78
Gabrielle M. Spiegel
5 Historical Thought in the Renaissance 99
Paula Findlen
PART II THE SHAPING OF MODERN WESTERN HISTORICAL THOUGHT
6 Historical Thought in the Era of the Enlightenment 123
Johnson Kent Wright
7 German Historical Thought in the Age of Herder, Kant, and Hegel 143
Harold Mah
8 German Historical Writing from Ranke to Weber: The Primacy of Politics 166
Harry Liebersohn
9 National History in the Age of Michelet, Macaulay, and Bancroft 185
Thomas N. Baker
10 Marxism and Historical Thought 205
Walter L. Adamson
PART III PATTERNS IN TWENTIETH-CENTURY WESTERN HISTORICAL THOUGHT
11 The Professionalization of Historical Studies and the Guiding Assumptions of Modern Historical Thought 225
Georg G. Iggers
12 The History of Armed Power 243
Peter Paret
13 Total History and Microhistory: The French and Italian Paradigms 262
David A. Bell
14 Anthropology and the History of Culture 277
William M. Reddy
15 The History of Science, Or, an Oxymoronic Theory of Relativistic Objectivity 297
Ken Alder
16 Language, Literary Studies, and Historical Thought 319
Susan A. Crane
17 Psychology, Psychoanalysis, and Historical Thought 337
Lynn Hunt
18 Redefining Historical Identities: Sexuality, Gender, and the Self 357
Carolyn J. Dean
19 Historicizing Natural Environments: The Deep Roots of Environmental History 372
Andrew C. Isenberg
PART IV CHALLENGES TO THE BOUNDARIES OF WESTERN HISTORICAL THOUGHT
20 The New World History 393
Jerry H. Bentley
21 Postcolonial History 417
Prasenjit Duara
22 The Multicultural History of Nations 432
Donna R. Gabaccia
23 New Technologies and Historical Knowledge 447
James M. Murray
24 The Visual Media and Historical Knowledge 466
Robert A. Rosenstone
Consolidated Bibliography 482
Index 495
