Customer Reviews

History in Crisis? Recent Directions in Historiography (2nd Edition)

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4 star:		(2)
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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

After years of searching for a suitable basic introductory text for undergraduate courses in the philosophy and method of history, I was pleased to happen upon Wilson's book. He is clear, concise and as comprehensive as one could hope for in such a brief work. My only complaint is that it is rather pricy for such a slim text.

Dr. Wilson does assume a lot when asking readers to follow his ramblings, however as an introduction to basic historiography the book can be useful. Having been part of an undergraduate seminar with Dr. Wilson in the first edition's formative stages, I can only assume that the 2nd edition was meant to be used by undergraduates only when assisted by a very knowing and able guide. The author himself and/or possibly other scholars could help unleash the benefits of text, but to ask most undergraduates to read as a stand alone without guidance, it is probably asking too much.

Don't let the size fool you. Wilson has packed a lot of knowledge and insight into a slim volume, so you should treat it like a book three times its size, and give yourself extra time to digest everything.

YOU PROBABLY WON'T GET IT ALL IN ONE READING
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His main arguments are easy enough for undergraduate and graduate students to discern, as long as they know not to get bogged down in the names, titles, and references to various theories. How to do this? When I read it, I put a mark in the margin for each name ("n"), source/book ("s"), and theory ("t") so that I could come back to those later. I resisted the urge to look up any of it on the first reading.

AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THE FIELD
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I've found that return visits are rewarding. I have often encountered the authors or discussions about them elsewhere by that time, and I understand more about what he is saying. I've found it useful to think of this as a kind of annotated bibliography of important works in the field of history. He shares just enough to give you a sense of what he is talking about. Chances are, if he mentions someone's name in the book, then they'll be worth reading in more depth later.

COVERAGE LIMITED, BUT GOOD INTRO TO THE FIELD
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Of course, his coverage is far from exhaustive. There are many other significant contributions to the field that I would have liked to have seen discussed in there. However, he provides a good starting point for those who want to know more about the origins, current trends, and future directions for the field.

OTHER BOOKS TO SEE
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Much more easily digestible (but bigger) books that address similar issues include Telling the Truth about History, That Noble Dream: The 'Objectivity Question' and the American Historical Profession (Ideas in Context), The Idea of History: With Lectures 1926-1928 (an oldy, but a goody), and The Historian's Craft (also old, but wonderful).

Being a first year grad student studying American diplomatic history, I was (and am) barraged by historiographical terms that were foreign to me. My undergrad classes in history mentioned NOTHING on historiography. I had no idea what the difference between postmodernist history and Ranke's school of thought in the 19th century was. Wilson's book has cleared up much of the confusion and gives a good, concise summary of the debates and movements in history. The stuff contained in this book is vital for students who wish to pursue a career in history, especially if the student wants to join the current debates on where the profession is headed.

With this being said the book is not for undergrads. I genuinely pity the biology student who has to read through Wilson's philosophical and historical musings. Wilson is not very forgiving when it comes to basic knowledge of key historical writings and he moves quickly from point to point. I believe the marketing of this book was done poorly, misleading many readers.

But again, if you are a grad student who is feeling "out-of-the-loop" on historical debates about history, give the book a try. It is concise and full of useful knowledge - so long as you come in with a foundation to work with.

This book is a HARD read. It is very ACADEMIC.

It is not "accessible to readers at all levels," as it claims to be.

College professors use this book for undegraduate courses, assuming students have the same expertise/background in history as they do. That is an unfair assumption.

DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THE SECOND EDITION! GET THE 1st INSTEAD!

(Chances are, unless you're the author, you won't understand the book regardless of the edition)

Trust me, I got this book for a college course and got zero helpful/practical information out of it.

I was forced to read this book for an undergraduate class and it was one of the most brutal experiences of my whole life. Unless you have an absolute mastery of history and science, you will not be able to understand or follow it. This book was certainly written for his peers, who enjoyed it, but then mistakingly decided to use it as a text. I do not recomend this to anyone, no matter how much you like history