Let me clarify. I'm not saying one can't write a book or teach a class
exclusively on the "littles." What I am arguing is that teaching that
exclusively is as narrowminded as teaching only the "greats." I'd simply
say (as I should have initially) that the complete picture needs all the
pieces as best we can put them together. Thus a story of the 1860s,
condensed for the needs of a high school class, needs to talk about both
Lincoln and the morality of the period as experienced and understood by
regular people.
One can lose the trees for the forest as easily as the forest for the trees.
Each has a place and each should be examined, but we need to appreciate that
they are interdependent.
DS
______________________________________
Daniel Sokolow, Archives Coordinator
David Taylor Archives
North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System
155 Community Drive
Great Neck, NY 11021
mailto:[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
-----Original Message-----
From: Archives & Archivists [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf
Of Cunningham, Ray
Sent: Thursday, March 09, 2006 11:31 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Teaching History
And frankly, I disagree that people can get a good grasp of history without
great men, great deeds. If you choose to add the story of regular people,
regular deeds that's fine, but I fail to see how you can truly grasp what
happens without understanding the role of the big players. You can
certainly learn a lot from the experience of the average Civil War soldier,
but skipping the role of Abraham Lincoln, R.E. Lee, and U.S. Grant is not my
idea of teaching the history properly.
As someone writing and publishing "microhistory" I take a different view.
Context is important to events on the micro scale. Obviously a village did
not have electricity in 1850 but to have to mention Abraham Lincoln in every
history of town life is nonsense. I am able to craft the story of a cooper,
blacksmith, banker or peddler quite well without the "big players" and I
have plenty of interesting material. The influence of Lincoln cannot be
understated but everyone grasps history in different ways. To discuss the
Great Depression at this level one would have to give context to FDR and the
WPA etc. but that is still something done in an introductory paragraph.
I think that it is fascinating to examine in great detail the lives of "the
boring masses" that are not as boring as viewing history from the elite
perspective implies. Having written on sex scandals of the 1860s,
prohibition and morality I discovered I did not have to mention Lincoln,
Grant or anyone else. When I write about epidemics I don't have to bring in
any elites - but I do have to tie it to events occurring elsewhere, events
that could be tied to governance or wealth.
There were extraordinary people out there who are never mentioned in any
book. They are free for the taking if you are willing to look. Boring?
hardly. I think most historians don't do their homework in enough depth to
make it interesting.
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