The Houses of History: A Critical Reader in Twentieth-Century History and Theory

Rating:
Summary: A good primer for historiographical debates
Review: I found this book very helpful in understanding the methodologies behind the different "houses" of historiography. As the first reviewer stated, it can sometimes be tedious, but if you need to know this stuff, this is a relatively painless way to go about doing it. Finally, I would just like to pose a question: why would anyone trust a review by a college student who cannot correctly spell "nonsense"?

Rating:
Summary: Don't listen to Jay!
Review: jargon free! HA! That's a good one. I had to read this for a second year historiography course. This is an extremely poorly written text which is very difficult to understand. The authors went out of their way to cloud the arguments in confusing language. I went into the course loving history. Now at the end of my second year I am switching majors because I would have to take a similar course in fourth year. History itself I love. Historiography is BORING. Such stupid debates permeate this discipline. gender history, oral history,... Forget this nonsence.

Rating:
Summary: This book will make you hate history
Review: jargon free! HA! That's a good one. I had to read this for a second year historiography course. This is an extremely poorly written text which is very difficult to understand. The authors went out of their way to cloud the arguments in confusing language. I went into the course loving history. Now at the end of my second year I am switching majors because I would have to take a similar course in fourth year. History itself I love. Historiography is BORING. Such stupid debates permeate this discipline. gender history, oral history,... Forget this nonsence.

Rating:
Summary: Don't listen to Jay!
Review: This is a response to the first review written by Jay, who claims that this book made him hate history, and further, change majors because of it. If this is the case, then that it great. The study of history doesn't need people like Jay! The value of this text is that it presents a brief synopsis of the main schools of historical thought, and an according sample with each. Jay is obviously of the dominant school (empiricist) that thinks history chould be treated like a science, without concern for philosophical questions. Despite what you may think about postmodernism, it has unearthed the deception of the empiricist school. By professing their method as THE path to THE truth, empiricists cut off unthought ideas by setting up a power discourse. They rule the universities, and anyone who wants to become a 'professional' historian must take his/her PHD pill from them. HOUSES OF HISTORY is a great text for the beginner in that it provides a brief summary of the schools of history, which is invaluable in undertaking a historiography course. Historiography is NOT boring and useless, and any historian who thinks it is is simply trying to prevent new ideas from emerging, ideas that might (oh no!) compromise his/her position. Don't listen to Jay.