A Companion to Western Historical Thought

This broad survey introduces readers to the major themes, figures, traditions and theories in Western historical thought, tracing its evolution from biblical times to the present. The volume comprises 24 chapters by leading historians who discuss conceptions of and approaches to the human past in the ancient, medieval, early modern and modern West, stressing the long–term patterns and traditions in historical thinking that survive to this day. Chapters range from overviews of eras in the history of historical thought, to discussions of new methods that historians have drawn from other disciplines and of new historical subjects, such as gender, sexuality, selfhood, and natural environments. The volume concludes with essays on contemporary challenges to classic, Western definitions of history that have emerged in global history, multiculturalism, post–colonialism, and new technologies. For students, this Companion provides the background they need in order to understand contemporary historical debates and approaches, while for researchers and teachers it will serve as a useful reference work.

List of Contributors. Acknowledgments. Introduction: The Cultural History of Historical Thought. (Lloyd Kramer and Sarah). Part I: The Pre–Modern Origins of Western Historical Thought. 1. Historiography in Ancient Israel. (John Van Seters). 2. Historical Thought in Ancient Greece. (Philip A. Stadter). 3. Historical Thought in Ancient Rome. (J. E. Lendon). 4. Historical Thought in Medieval Europe. (Gabrielle M. Spiegel). 5. Historical Thought in the Renaissance. (Paula Findlen). Part II: The Shaping of Modern Western Historical Thought. 6. Historical Thought in the Era of Enlightenment. (Johnson Kent Wright). 7. German Historical Thought in the Age of Herder, Kant, and Hegel. (Harold Mah). 8. Historical Thought from Ranke to Weber: The Primacy of Politics. (Harry Liebersohn). 9. National History in the Age of Michelet, Macaulay, and Bancroft. (Thomas N. Baker). 10. Marxism and Historical Thought: Walter L. Adamson (Emory University). Part III: Patterns in Twentieth–Century Western Historical Thought. 11. The Professionalization of Historical Studies and the Guiding Assumptions of Modern Historical Thought. (Georg G. Iggers). 12. The History of Armed Power. (Peter Paret). 13. Total History and Microhistory: The French and Italian Paradigms. (David A. Bell). 14. Anthropology and the History of Culture. (William M. Reddy). 15. The History of Science, or, An Oxymoronic Theory of Relativistic Objectivity. (Ken Alder). 16. Language, Literary Studies and Historical Thought. (Susan A. Crane). 17. Psychology: Psychoanalysis, and Historical Thought. (Lynn Hunt). 18. Redefining Historical Identities: Sexuality, Gender and the Self. (Carolyn J. Dean). 19. Historicizing Natural Environments: The Deep Roots of Environmental History. (Andrew C. Isenberg). Part IV: Challenges to the Boundaries of Western Historical Thought. 20. The New World History. (Jerry H. Bently). 21. Postcolonial History. (Prasenjit Duara). 22. The Multicultural History of Nations. (Donna R. Gabbacia). 23. New Technologies and Historical Knowledge. (James M. Murray 24. The Visual Media and Historical Knowledge. (Robert A. Rosenstone). Consolidated Bibliography. Index.

Lloyd Kramer is Professor of History at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. His previous publications include Threshold of a New World: Intellectuals and the Exile Experience in Paris, 1830–1848 (1988), Lafayette in Two Worlds: Public Cultures and Personal Identities in an Age of Revolutions (1996), and Nationalism: Political Cultures in Europe and America, 1775–1865 (1998). Sarah Maza is Jane Long Professor of Arts and Sciences at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. She is the author of Servants and Masters in Eighteenth–century France (1983) and Private Lives and Public Affairs: The Causes Célèbres of Pre–Revolutionary France (1993).

"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 Reviews