[WHAT IS HISTORY? The American historian Barbara Tuchman once asked the question “When does history happen?” In other words, is what happened last week history or is it merely the past? Does the past become history only once it has been interpreted by historians? Understanding the discipline of history is a very complex challenge involving issues such as how his- torians select data to study, conflicting interpreta- tions, and what biases are brought to the subject at hand. Historians attempt to make sense of the past often with limited information, and always with the challenge of viewing distant cultures through the lenses of our modern world. Change and Continuity in History History is a discipline that focuses on the study of change over time, and is most concerned with the question why? Historians gather facts in order to understand why events occurred and the impact these events had on society. In some cases, continu- ity and stability — the lack of change — occupy the historian’s attention. How is it, in a world of con- stant change, that some aspects of some societies and cultures remain surprisingly stable? Is continu- a good thing or does it lead to stagnation, caus- try or society to fall behind other parts of i have embraced change? Throughout Past, you will read about how sig- changes. Think about which aspects of tions you study provided continuity and did these institutions sustain them- g periods of time, and why was the sta- vital to the survival of the duction to Historical Inquiry society? Are there examples of when continuity was detrimental to a society? METHODS OF HISTORICAL INQUIRY Gathering the Evidence The path to understanding the past is a bit like an obstacle course. The first hurdle facing historians is determining the focus of study. They review what has already been written, and then generate a list of probing questions. By taking the time to formulate questions, historians are able to focus their research and make a monumental task more manageable Once they have a focus, historians begin hunting down data, Data are often sparse and hard to find, especially about people who had no rank or power. Historians rely on two types of resources when gath- ering information. Secondary sources — books, journals, film — are accounts of the past based on research and analysis. They help provide a context for research and are important starting points. Secondary sources help the historian see how others have interpreted the past and which biases may have shaped their views. The study of how history has been written is referred to as historiography; you could call it “the history of history.” Critically important to the study of history are primary sources, accounts recorded at the time of an. event, which may include diaries, eyewitness accounts, government records, ships’ logs, or news- paper articles. Primary sources can also be non-writ- ten data such as pottery pieces (also called potsherds) or other artifacts found by archaeologists, cave paintings, or the remains of an ancient religious site. Whether written or unwritten, primary sources are raw, unprocessed data that historians interpret as,they try to reconstruct the past. So, is history inde pendent of historians or created by th m? Can a truly objective history ever be written, or are all accounts, of the past subject to the biases of those who wrote them? Understanding that all historical accounts must be scrutinized carefully is an important lesson for students of history. You will always find secondary sources in a library. What primary sources might you find there as well? Reconstructing the Past Just as change occurs over time, so does our under- standing of the past change as the result of new interpretations and knowledge. Historians are not alone in the quest to reconstruct the past. Other dis- ciplines such as archaeology, anthropology, ethnol- ogy, economics, geography, and the sciences play important roles Legends and History At some point in our lives, we have all b nated by a legend. Whether through the stori¢ King Arthur or Robin Hood, King Solomon's Mir h for Atlan the epic of Gilgamesh, or the se are drawn to the excitement and intrigue of Unlike myths, which deal with the divine, an humanity’ relationship with the divine, the cent characters of legends are human, and the stories usually have a basis in fact. Often legends deal with the achievements of great leaders, the exploits of great warriors, or the wisdom of great sages and magicians. Although the characters take on super- human qualities and the events are distorted, leg- ends remain more than fanciful stories. Legends can act as signposts to historians and archaeologists by capturing the imagination and preserving the essence of the character, event, or society portrayed. From there, the great challenge is to separate fact from fiction. Some dedicate much of their lives to unearthing the history underlying a legend, as did Heinrich Schliemann with the legends of Troy and Mycenae. In some cases, the rewards have been astounding; in others, the quest continues. Recall... Review.. Reflect 1. What are the major challenges historians face in writing history? 2. How would you define the study of history? 3. What role can legends play in helping us to uncover the past? PROLOGUE An Introduction to Historical Inquiry « MHR 52 rately disclose the age of material up to 40 000 years old. When 5730 years have passed after the death of an organism, the radiocarbon level is at exactly one half of the original level, and after another 5730 years itis, again, exactly half. Decay of the radiocarbon will continue according to this formula. Measuring the radiocarbon can establish the stage of decay and thus indicate the amount of time elapsed since the death of the organism. Radiocarbon dating is the most pop- ular archaeological technique for dating organic materials and probably the most effective. ANALYZING HISTORICAL RESEARCH The data archaeologists gather is only one of the sources a historian draws upon when attempting to reconstruct the past. Legends, as we have seen, can be a rich source of inspiration and a good starting point. ‘Written records provide the historian with even more ‘material. It is important to keep in mind that the fact that an eyewitness wrote an account at the time does not always mean that it can be accepted as true. For example, in 1554, on a voyage to Guinea, John Lock recorded that he saw elephants and dragons engaged in mortal combat, but neglected to explain that his crew had hidden in a tree when an anteater appeared. The reason why details like this were recorded or left out lies in the mental baggage carried by both explor- ers and the readers of their reports. Mental baggage refers to the preconceived ideas that lead people to interpret events or draw conclu- sions in a way that meets their expectations. The merchants who funded the voyage would never have believed the story of the anteater since none had ever been reported before. However, people fully expected that there would be dragons in faraway exotic places. To ensure funding for future voyages, the report told Mug ¢ PROLOGUE An Introduction to Historical Inquiry of events that the merchants could imagine, and avoided aspects of the truth that might have seemed like lies or exaggeration, From this example, we see that when analyzing primary documents, historians must take into account the mental baggage of both the intended audience and the writer. Understanding Bias in History Ithas been said that history is written by the winners. This expression points to another factor historians must be aware of — bias. For example, after Richard II of England lost his throne during the Wars of the Roses, he was portrayed as an evil and corrupt king, The first accounts of his reign must, however, be examined carefully since they were written by histori- ans working for Richard’ archrival Henry Tudor They were biased in Henry’ favour since he had won the war. Bias is the point of view that people tend to bring to a situation and consequently makes it diffi- cult or impossible for them to judge fairly. Diary entries and newspaper accounts, while preserving the details of an event, may reflect the biases of the writer. ‘When dealing with primary documents, the historian must carefully analyze both the facts and the source. Aside from drawing on archaeological information and other primary sources, historians also rely on sec- ondary sources. Secondary sources are accounts writ- ten after an event, and are generally based on information contained in primary sources or other sec- ondary sources, Secondary sources can give the histo rian a framework, or context, within which to work. By drawing on the work of other historians, the task can become more manageable. Secondary sources can vary from ancient texts to recent publications. A work such as the Histories by Herodotus, a historical account of the Greek-Persian Wars, is considered a secondary source even though it was written over 2400 years ago