History in Practice

Exploring the breadth and complexities of history as a field of study, History in Practice demystifies what historians actually do and the tasks they take on. This study, written by one of the most acute practitioners in the field, examines not only the academic discipline but also engages with the use of historical ideas in the wider world. This book is essential reading for all students seeking an understanding of history as a discipline. This New Study By One Of The Liveliest And Most Acute Practitioners In The Field Has A Refreshing Transparency, A Determination To Demystify What Historians Do. It Looks At History As An Academic Discipline But Also Engages With The Use Of Historical Ideas In The Wider World. It Examines The Way Historians Have 'divided Up' Their Subject, How This Has Changed And With What Effects. Why Have Certain Fields, Such As Women's History And Black History, Generated Such Intense Debates About Their Value And Validity? Is There Justification For The Frequent Characterisation Of History As Something Of A Jackdaw Subject, With A Tendency To Appropriate Theories And Concepts From Other Areas? What Is The Nature Of The Links With Adjacent Fields, Such As Anthropology And Literary Theory? Issues Such As These Are Part Of The Book's Careful Mapping Of The Theory And Practice Of History, Exploring The Discipline's Breadth, Its Complexities And The Intellectual Tasks It Takes On.--book Jacket. List Of Illustrations -- Preliminaries -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Mapping The Discipline Of History -- 3. History And Other Disciplines -- 4. The Status Of Historical Knowledge -- 5. Periodisation -- 6. Public History -- 7. Historians' Skills -- Postscript: History's Future: A Personal Statement -- Further Reading -- Glossary -- Index. Ludmilla Jordanova. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. How do the ways historians divide up their subject affect their work, and how have these divisions changed over the years? Why have certain fields, such as women's history and Black history, generated such intense debate about their value and validity? Is history a subject that primarily appropriates its theory from other disciplines? And what is the nature of the links between history and related disciplines, such as anthropology and literary theory? In this lively and readable study, Ludmilla Jordanova examines the many changes in the study of history in recent decades. The nature and implications of the changes remain hotly contested, and Jordanova proves a reliable guide to the emerging discipline. She looks at what historians do, how their work is used in the wider world, and how their methods are continuing to evolve. Ideal for undergraduates and general readers, the book provides an essential theoretical framework for anyone pursuing the study of history. List of Illustrations Preliminaries 1. Introduction 2. Mapping the Discipline of History 3. History in other disciplines 4. The Status of Historical Knowledge 5. Periodisation 6. Public History 7. Historians' Skills Postscript