WHAT IS HISTORY?

History is the study of the past, particularly people and events of the past. History is a pursuit common to
all human societies. Human beings have always been interested in the past, for many reasons. History is a
tremendous story, a rolling narrative filled with great personalities, struggle and suffering, turmoil and
triumph. Each passing generation adds its own chapter to history, while reinterpreting and finding new
things in those chapters already written. History also gives us a sense of identity, helping us to understand
who we are. History provides a sense of context for our lives and our existence, teaching us where we
have come from and how we should approach the future. History shows us what it means to be human
and highlights the tremendous achievements and the great follies of the human race. History also gives us
lessons about how we should organise and manage our societies, for the betterment of all.

Those starting out in history often consider history and the past to be the same thing. This is not the case.
The past refers to an earlier time, the people and societies who inhabited it and the events that took place
there. History describes our attempts at investigating, studying and explaining the past. It is a subtle
difference but an important one. What happened in the past is fixed in time and cannot be changed.
History, however, changes regularly. The word “history” and the English word “story” both originate from
the Latin historia, meaning a narrative or account of past events. History is itself a collection of thousands
of stories about the past, told by many different people. Because there are so many stories, they are often
variable, contradictory and conflicting. And like all stories, history is subject to revision and reinterpretation.
Each generation looks at the past in its own way, applying different standards, priorities and values. The
study of how history differs and has changed over time is called historiography.

Like historical narratives themselves, our understanding of what history is and what shape it should take is
flexible and open to disagreement. For as long as people have studied history, historians have nursed
different ideas about how history should be studied, constructed, written and interpreted. Historians
therefore approach history in different ways, using different ideas and methods and focusing on different
things. The links below contain several popular theories of history utilised by well known historians:

History is the study of great individuals

According to the ancient Greek writer Plutarch, history is chiefly the product of great leaders and
innovators. Prominent individuals shape the course of history through their personality, strength of
character, ambition, abilities, leadership or creativity. Plutarch’s histories were written almost as
biographies or ‘life and times’ stories of these great individuals; he explained how the actions of these
great figures shaped the course of their nations or societies. This approach served as a model for many
later historians. It is often referred to as ‘top down’ history, because of its focus on rulers or leaders.  One
advantage to this approach is its accessibility and relative easiness. It is generally much easier to research
and write about individuals than social movements or complex factors. This focus on individuals also tends
to be more interesting and accessible to readers. The main problem with Plutarch’s approach is that it can
sidestep, simplify or overlook historical factors and conditions that do not emanate from important
individuals.

History is the study of the 'winds of change'

Other historians have focused less on individuals and taken a more thematic approach, looking at factors
and forces that produce significant historical change. Some have looked at what might broadly be
described as the ‘winds of change’: powerful ideas, forces and movements that shape or affect how people
live, work and think. These great ideas and movements are often initiated or driven by influential people –
but they soon become much larger forces for change. As the ‘winds of change’ strengthen and grow they
shape or influence political, economic and social events and conditions. One notable ‘wind of change’ was
Christianity, which shaped government, society and social customs in medieval Europe. Another was the
European Enlightenment, which undermined old ideas about politics, religion and the natural world, and
triggered a long period of curiosity, education and innovation. Marxism emerged in the late 19th century
and grew to challenge the old order in Russia, China and elsewhere, shaping government and society in
those nations. The Age of Exploration, the Industrial Revolution, decolonisation in the mid 1900s and the
winding back of eastern European communism in the late 1900s are all tangible examples of the ‘winds of
change’.

History is the study of challenge and response

Some historians, such as the British writer Arnold Toynbee (1889-1975), believed that historical change is
driven by challenges and responses. All civilisations are defined not just by their leadership or conditions,
but by how they respond to difficult problems or crises. These challenges take many forms. They can be
physical, environmental, economic or ideological; they can derive from internal pressures or external
factors; they can come from their own people or from outsiders. The survival and success of a civilisation
is often determined by how it responds to these challenges. This itself often depends on its people and
how creative, resourceful, adaptable and flexible they are. Human history is filled with many tangible
examples of challenge and response. Many nations have been confronted with powerful rivals, wars,
natural disasters, economic slumps, new ideas, emerging political movements and internal dissent. The
process of colonisation, for example, involved major challenges, both for colonising settlers and native
inhabitants. Economic changes, such as new technologies and increases or decreases in trade, can
create challenges in the form of social changes or class tensions.

History is the study of dialectics

In philosophical terms, dialectics is the process where two or more parties resolve disagreements through
rational discussion, compromise and mutual agreement. The concept of dialectics was applied to history
by German philosopher Georg Hegel (1770-1831). Hegel suggested that most historical changes and
outcomes were driven by dialectic interaction. According to Hegel, for every thesis (a proposition or ‘idea’)
there exists an antithesis (a reaction or ‘opposite idea’). The thesis and antithesis encounter or struggle,
from which emerges a synthesis (a ‘new idea’). This ongoing process of struggle and development reveals
new ideas and new truths to humanity. The German philosopher Karl Marx (1818-1883) was a student of
Hegel and incorporated the Hegelian dialectic into his own theory of history – but with one important
distinction. According to Marx, history was shaped by the ‘material dialectic’: the struggle between
economic classes. Marx believed that economic factors underpinned most social structures and
interactions. All classes struggle and push to improve their economic condition, Marx wrote, usually at the
expense of other classes. Marx’s material dialectic was reflected in his stinging criticisms of capitalism, a
political and economic system where the ruling classes own and control the means of production.

History is the story of the unexpected

Some historians believe that history is shaped by the accidental, the surprising and the unexpected. While
history and historical change often follow patterns, they can also be unpredictable and chaotic. For all our
fascination with timelines and linear progression, history does not always follow a clear and
expected path. The past is filled with unexpected incidents, surprises and accidental discoveries. Some of
these have unleashed historical forces and changes that could not be predicted, controlled or stopped. A
few have come at pivotal times and served as the ignition or ‘flashpoint’ for changes of great significance.
The discovery of gold has triggered ‘gold rushes’ that have shaped the future of entire nations.  In June
1914 Archduke Franz Ferdinand’s car took a different route through Sarajevo and ended up passing an
aimless Gavrilo Princip, a confluence of events that changed the course of history. American historian
Daniel Boorstin (1914-2004), an exponent of this fascination with historical accidents, claimed that if
Cleopatra’s nose had been shorter, thus diminishing her beauty, then the history of the world might have
been radically different. SOURCE: http://alphahistory.com/what-is-history/