070098 UE Reading Historiography (2021W)

The course offers an overview of the history of historiography since the beginning of the writing of history, with a focus on the increasing critique of the "Great Men Theory" and the development of approaches of a "history from below" starting in the 19th century. Beginning with the questions "To what end does who write whose history?" our epistemological interest is situated in the relationship between history, power, and domination. We will examine how new approaches to historiography have attempted to question existing power relations or hegemonic discourses. Key topics include, but are not limited to, debates between historicism and historical materialism, the influence of the Annales School, approaches to historical social science, and microhistory.
The participants answer weekly texts based on guiding questions and then discuss them in the course. For each unit, students act as facilitators; they read the thesis papers in advance, prepare a short input, bring up discussion questions, and then moderate the discussion.