"Understanding Marc Bloch's Conception of History: A Critical Analysis of 'Apologie pour l'Histoire ou Métier d'Historien'"
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Marc Bloch, historian craft, history science, social science, anthropology, sociology, historical method, medieval studies
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Abstract
"Unlock the essence of historical inquiry with Marc Bloch's seminal work, 'Apologie for History or The Historian's Craft'. This influential book probes the very foundations of history as a social science, exploring its scientific nature, methodology, and the historian's role. Bloch, a distinguished medievalist, posits that history is 'the science of men in time', emphasizing the study of human actions and their lasting impact. Discover how he defends history's scientificity, despite its lack of 'Euclidean demonstrations', and learn about the importance of collaborative work in historical research. Dive into Bloch's thought-provoking ideas on the legitimacy of history and its relevance in combating misinformation. Explore the intricacies of historical analysis and the historian's craft, and gain a deeper understanding of the past and its continued influence on the present."
Extract
[...] In the context of this work, it is a matter of proposing a reading evaluation of Marc BLOCH's book, titled Apologie for History or The Historian's Craft. This work was published after the author's death in 1949. He was a renowned medievalist. Bloch poses questions in it about what history is really and, among other things, the profession of the historian and its methods in order to achieve the construction of the science that history is ultimately. We can see that during his time, Bloch was considered an engaged historian and passionately defended the thesis that history is a social science. [...]
[...] In fact, the scientific nature of history according to the same author lies in certainty and universality. The negative points are: The publisher Pierre Lefebve's statement of not having heard the word 'evolution' pronounced throughout the book is entirely false. In fact, we can, through a careful and successive reading of the chapters, note that this term returns at least eight times. The problem of the legitimacy of history has not been resolved by Bloch. He left it to the reader to 'solve it implicitly' (ibid, pp. [...]
[...] In reality, he indicates that history is 'the science of men in time.' (Bloch Marc Apologie for History or The Historian's Craft, chap pp to Further, he confirms: 'never a historical event is fully explained outside of the study of its moment' (ibid, pp. As for the historian's profession, he emphasizes the work in collaboration. This collaborative work should lead to a conception of history, now rich in anthropological and sociological data, in a certain design to fight against false information resulting from a deliberate and intentional lie. [...]
