Chapter 1:The Past in the Present

Historical Interpretation in International Conflict

Introduction

• Historical inquiry combines all disciplines of international study:– Geographical– Economic

• Exchange of goods and services• Labor history

– Political• Power and power relationships

– Cultural and Social• Music, art, sports, etc.

– Intellectual• Influence of various ideologies (religion, nationalism, etc.)

– Environmental• Human interaction with their natural surroundings

What is History?

• Objectivity– Causation, interpretation, significance

• Mythical history– Meant to explain the origins of the world– Not usually accurate

• History before the 20th century– Dominated by political history

• Von Ranke’s history– “As it really was”

• Revisionist history– Scientific truth inaccurate

• Postmodernist history– No true history

Historians and Their Tools

• Primary Sources– Direct evidence about the past– Artifacts, diaries, letters, e-mails

• Secondary Sources– Derived from primary sources– Oral or written narratives

• Historiography– A history of histories

Politics, Power, and History

• Christopher Columbus– How do we know this story?

• Bias in history– Most history from oppressor, not oppressed– History from oppressed is just as biased

• Soviet glasnost (openness)– Falsehoods of Soviet history revealed

History and International Conflicts

• History with an agenda– Not always what it seems

• Nationalist histories– Champion one nation over another– Elicit demands for retribution

• Irish Catholic nationalist history– British as imperial conquest, not as settlement

• Israeli/Palestine conflict• “Freedom Fighters” rather than “Terrorists”

What is Good History?

• American Historical Association– American Historical Review

• Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations– Diplomatic History

• University presses and research centers• Popular histories

– Sometimes embellished– Titanic, Enemy at the Gates, Saving Private Ryan

Theories of History

• Theories constructed to explain and understand the human condition

• Europe’s rise to global ascendancy– Geographical and climatic advantage?– Balance of power among European states?– What caused this rise to power?

• Evolutionism vs. Creationism• Providential history• Progressive history• Pessimistic history

Are There Lessons of History?

• History doesn’t tell us to do anything• We draw from history to make current

decisions• Must adjust for the situation and use

history only as a guideline• U.S. assumption about Vietnam based on

history– Made for another lesson in history