This unit is designed to help students to become better historians and better analysts of historical writing.  It seeks to illuminate the principles, strategies and assumptions which underlie different forms of history - both today and in the past.  And it seeks to acquaint students with current debates about the discipline.

This course considers what historians aim to do, and what they actually do. It asks questions such as:  How can we know what happened in the past?  Why do historians disagree about what happened?   What is the relationship between the present and the past, and how does this inform the way we research and write history?  How are historical narratives constructed?  What literary and rhetorical techniques do they use?  How do they employ evidence? 

The course will consider key developments in historical thought and method, from the classical period to the present day.  It will invite students to consider the social functions of historical writing, as well as to critically assess the methods and models employed by different schools and traditions amongst historians.  Students will have a chance to examine trends in recent historical practice, and to explore the influence of disciplines such as sociology and anthropology on history, as well as of movements such as postmodernism, feminism and post-colonialism.

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Comprehend and constructively debate key philosophical and methodological issues central to the study of history and important to other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences.
2. Critically analyse the methods which have been employed by different historians and schools of historical thought in their efforts to understand and write about the past. 
3. Detect the underlying premises and assumptions embedded in specific pieces of historical writing and/or other forms of historical media.
4. Construct sustained arguments concerning the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to the study of the past.
5. Reflect on theoretical issues relevant to the practice of different forms of history and their implications for students’ own work.
6. Design and produce a reflective research project illuminating issues theoretical issues relevant to the practice of History.

1st Essay 2500 words (35%) [Learning Outcomes 1-4]

Research project 3500 words (55%) [Learning Outcomes 1-6]

Oral and/or written contribution to class activities (10%) [Learning Outcomes 1-5]

One lecture (1.5 hours) and one tutorial (1 hour) per week for twelve weeks.  Students are expected to commit at least 7.5 hours per week of private study.  Lectures will be recorded.