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History And Historians: A Historical Introduction

mark t. gilderhus

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For undergraduate and graduate courses in Historiography and Historical Method. Also an ideal supplemental text for Western Civilization and Intellectual History courses. This text is a concise, brief, and accessible introductory text presenting a thorough, balanced, and comprehensive overview of Western historical thinking from ancient times through the present. Reaching to readers of all levels, it covers major areas such as historiography, philosophy of history, and historical methodology, as well as material on contemporary culture wars and current debates on post modernism.

156 pages, Paperback

First published November 1,1991

This edition

Format
156 pages, Paperback
Published
January 1, 2006 by Pearson College Div
ISBN
9780132286787
ASIN
0132286785
Language
English

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mark t. gilderhus

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Rating(4.3 / 5.0, 19 votes)
5 stars
10(53%)
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4(21%)
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5(26%)
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19 reviews All reviews
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jexnni
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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particularly good introduction to historiography. Gilderhus clearly identifies and decribes of the major themes and debates among the more important historical thinkers from Herodotus to the 1960s. Includes good lists of recommended readings for each chapter. As an introductory text it earns 4 stars.
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Gluomme
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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Chapter seven, the second to last chapter of the book, remains my favourite. Elsewhere, concepts and schools of thought are briefed over with little explaination. Chapter 7 has a more detailed look at a couple key issues in history; mainly the Enola Gay / Smithsonian scandle. I wish the rest of the book handled issues in this way.
I did find the last chapter, on reading and writing history, to be a bit pretentious in nature, and as a history student myself, I understand the need for clear and concise writing, but I can't help but think that there should be room for more liberal writing in academia. Scholars that I've read that have attempted to communicate more freely, I find much more enjoyable. His discouragement of these practices comes off a bit harsh and, as I said, pretentious.
Ultimately, this book is a useful tool, and has helped me formulate my understanding of the history of history. May not read again, but I did take quite a few notes I'll return too.
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Tsrorst
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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A brief guide describing an overview of Western historical thinking. When we read history books or tour a historical museum, we expect to see all of history as it happened-properly. Sometimes, key groups get omitted or a twist is taken on a certain historical account. And not all done with malice. Sometimes, yes. It's just how people tend to relay history according to various factors. This book discusses this at length. And it's no small task.

"Although particularities and divergences of many sorts characterize the craft of history in the present day, one thing seems reasonably clear. History no longer sets forth common stories that presumably speak for the identity and experience of all readers."

So, when you travel to a historical site, think of whether it's based on factual evidence. Or if all players in that historical account are included. It's funny how our history is written, portrayed in books, defined by someone else. Is that person elitist in their portrayal of historical accounts? Have they included all the facts. Did they dilute the facts? These things we take for granted when it comes to history and how it's told. This book is great because it tries to explain why this happens.
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vrxya_Y
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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It's lucid enough and... adequate. But I think that Gilderhus, while dismissing teleological views of history, tends towards a teleological view of historiography. The book is dismissive of premodern history-writing, and doesn't really engage with the tendentious nature of the constructed "western tradition" of history-writing. History is generally presented as, ideally, a rational and objective enterprise, scientific and secular. The cursory overview of various historiographical schools might be useful in conjunction with excerpts from the historians themselves, but I don't find it particularly satisfactory as a teaching text.
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Golden_Pleb
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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Good info, but buried under too much scholarly prose. Remove the academic gobbledygook, and this brief volume would reach a much broader audience. Postmodernism and culture wars need more fleshing out than the brief postscript provides.
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drunklee
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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The volume is informative, brisk, and keeps an engaging pace that never left my mind wandering or feeling bored. Gilderhus encapsulates a large amount of information in a very approachable and easy-to-understand format in cataloging the various historiographical methods of the world's greatest historians and how they viewed history.

Gilderhus is largely unable to keep his biases hidden, and holds a great contempt for the Enlightenment thinkers, primarily Voltaire. Gilderhus simultaneously criticizes Voltaire for hating and judging the past, and failing to view previous events in their proper historical context. This is ironic, as Gilderhus commits the same "historian's sin" against Voltaire by not considering or acknowledging the context of the Enlightenment era that led Voltaire and his ilk to consider the past a cautionary tale to avoid repeating in matters of theocratic government. Gilderhus also venerates Vico as a man of logic and evidence, while turning a blind eye to his entirely superstitious based Providential schema which viewed the divine will of an invisible being as the ultimate source of all historical events.
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KuroGFX
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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Definitely one of the more readable historiographical texts I've read!
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RegalRascal
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 26,2025
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Not only was this book a required text for our "Prelude" class as history majors at Colorado State University. The author was our professor and the department head. Dr. Gilderhus was a great instructor with a passion for the subject of history. This book is meant to serve as an introduction to the study of history.
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