Theories and Methods of History

Paper Code: 
24DHIS 701
Credits: 
06
Contact Hours: 
90.00
Max. Marks: 
100.00
Objective: 

Course Objectives

In this course, students will gain a comprehensive understanding of the field of history. They will contextualize the meaning, nature, and scope of history, delving into its various dimensions. Through the exploration of historical facts and their interpretation, students will develop critical thinking skills and an appreciation for the complexities of historical analysis, including causation, objectivity, and generalization. Moreover, they will examine contrasting theories of history, comparing and contrasting cyclical and linear perspectives, thus gaining insight into different approaches to understanding the historical process. This course provides students with a solid foundation in historical study, equipping them with the tools to analyze and interpret the past effectively.

 

Course Outcomes: 

Course Outcomes (CO)

Course

Learning outcomes (at course level)

Learning and teaching strategies

Assessment Strategies

Course Code

Course Title

24DHIS 701

Theories and Methods of History

CO49- Assess the Meaning, Nature and scope of History.

CO50- Analyse the historical Fact and its Interpretation in History

CO51 Assess historical concepts like facts, causation, and generalization, alongside the debate on objectivity and subjectivity in history, to gain insights into diverse dimensions of the human past.

CO52- Critically analyze historical theories, especially cyclical ones, with reference to Spengler and Toynbee.

CO53 – Critically assess linear theories of history, including Christian, Marxian, Hegelian, and Actonian perspectives.

CO54-Contribute effectively in course-specific interaction

Approach in teaching:

Interactive Lectures, Discussion, Tutorials, Reading assignments, Power Point Presentation

 

Learning activities for the students:

Self-learning assignments, Effective questions, Seminar presentation, Giving tasks.

Class test, Semester end examinations, Quiz, Solving problems in tutorials, Assignments, Presentation, Individual and group projects

 

18.00
Unit I: 
Distinctiveness of historical inquiry

Meaning and relevance of History

Nature and scope of History: Ancillary and Auxiliary branches of history.

 

 

18.00
Unit II: 
Sources and interpretation

Historical Fact and Interpretation

Idea of Progress in History.

18.00
Unit III: 
Objectivity and History writing

Causation, Objectivity and Generalisation in History

 

 

18.00
Unit IV: 
Theories of History

Cyclical with special reference to Spengler and Toynbee

 

18.00
Unit V: 
Theories of History

Positivism and Idealism     

Linear Theories of History – Christian, Marx, Hegel and Acton.

 

Essential Readings: 

Recommended Reading

  • Agrawal V S :Itihas Darshan (in Hindi), Varanasi
  • Collingwood, R. G. The Idea of History, Oxford University Press. Oxford 1978
  • Collingwood, R. G. The Idea of History, Ed. T. M. Knox (Oxford University Press, London, 1973)
  • E.H. Carr: What is History, London, 1962,
  • Elton G. R., The Practice of History, The Fontana Library, London, 1969
  • Lernon M.C.: Philosophy of History (A Guide for students)
  • Lanaglosis C. V. & Segnobosis, Introduction to the study of History, Duckworth 1925.
  • Lanaglosis C. V. & Segnobosis, Introduction to the study of History, Duckworth1848. Lord Acton, Lectures on the Study of History, New York, 1961.
  • Prakash Buddha :Itihas Darshan (in Hindi), Lucknow, 1962
  • Pande C (ed.):Itihas-Swaroop evam siddhanth (in Hindi), Jaipur
  • Sreedharan. E, A Textbook of Historiography, Orient Longman Private Limited, 2004.
  • Sreedharan. E, A Manual of Historical Research Methodology, Centre for South Indian Studies, Trivandrum, 2007

 

References: 

E-Resources

Meaning and relevance of History

Idea of Progress in History

Causation

Objectivity and Generalisation in History

Spengler and Toynbee

 

 

Academic Year: 
2024-25
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