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History Notes Disciplines of History: Comparative History & Historical Argument Notes

Disciplines Summary Notes

Updated Disciplines Summary Notes

Disciplines of History: Comparative History & Historical Argument Notes

Disciplines of History: Comparative History & Historical Argument

Approximately 360 pages

These notes contain all the work that I did on the Oxford University module: Disciplines of History.

The module was intended to teach students about drawing historical comparisons and making historical arguments.

There are extremely detailed notes on the following topics:
Comparative History
Urban History
Visual Culture and Historiography
Documentary Photography
Sources for the Self and Autobiography
Comparative Religion and Religious Historiography

In addition, there is a 51 page ...

The following is a more accessible plain text extract of the PDF sample above, taken from our Disciplines of History: Comparative History & Historical Argument Notes. Due to the challenges of extracting text from PDFs, it will have odd formatting:

! Contents' Comparisons' ! Comparative'Theory' Marc'Bloch' Orality'+'Literacy'8'Education,'Schools,'Universities' Crime,'Punishment,'the'Law,'Judicial'Systems' Civic'Society'and'Guilds' Family' Gender'and'Sexuality' Religion'and'Belief' Conversion Persecution'and'Toleration' Aristocracy'and'Elites' Slavery,'Serfdom,'Underclass' Economic'Systems,'Development,'Globalisation' Modern'Environment,'Urbanisation,'Town'and'Country' Medieval'and'Early'Modern'Urbanisation' Identities'8'Social,'Ethnic,'Geographical,'National' Ritual,'Custom,'Myths' Political'Ideas'and'Ideologies' Power,'Government,'Bureaucracy' Revolutions,'Regime'Change,'Riots' ! Definitions' Visual'Culture' Documentary'Photography' Anthropology' Sociology' Sources'for'the'Self'8'autobiography'and'subjectivity' Psychoanalysis' Religion' Karl'Marx' Max'Weber' Emile'Durkheim' Clifford'Geertz Comparisons' ! Prostitution)/)gender)/)persecution)) *> Medieval)regulation)of)prostitution) *> C16th)Luther's)attitude) ! Jews)/)genocide)/)violence) *> English)Jews)1290) *> C16th)Germany)v.)Holocaust) ! Segregation)/)violence)/)rites)/)conversion) *> English)Jews)1290) *> Wars)of)Religion) *> Persecution)of)Anabaptists) ! Unbelief) *> Medieval)'pagan')remnants)+)expropriation) *> C16th)atheism) *> Victorian)loss)of)faith) ! Literacy) *> Luther)+)German)peasants) *> Wars)of)Religion) *> Victorian)secularisation) ! Law) *> Medieval) *> Victorian)England) ! Towns) *> Medieval)economy) *> C18th)economy) ! Conversion) *> Huguenots) *> Anabaptists) ! Toleration)/)economic)role) *> C13th)Jews) *> C16th)Anabaptists) ! Popular)religion) *> Medieval)England) *> Early)modern)England) *> Lutheran)Germany) *> Victorians) ! Marriage)/)law)/)honour)/)economy)/)inheritance) *> Medieval)law)+)economy) *> C18th)Europe) ! Inflation) *> Medieval)England) *> C16th)England) *> C18th)Europe) ! Science)+)religion) *> Hermeticism) *> Victorian ! ! Break)down)parts)of)the)question) ! Work)out)ways)of)answering)in)first)2)sentences) *> Set)up)question)or)answer) *> Could)start)with)an)assertion) ! Organise)thematically) ! Question)the)theme)[)reason)+)ideas) ! Illustrative'+'negative'case) *> Critique)of)model)[)not)true)/)not)useful) *> See)whether)question)is)a)useful)approach)[)need)to)remove)some)assumptions) *> Or)negative)[)question)does)not)show)impulses)of)social)actors)=>)trapping) them) ! Do)not)need)an)alternative)positive)model)[)just)show)what)escapes)explanation ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Whose)toleration?) Who)has)power?) Conflict)with)socio[cultural)values) Jurisdictions)+)violations)of)power) Legal)codes) Toleration)[)right)to)exist)v.)culturally)favourable)attitude) *> Tension Comparative'Theory' ! Comparison)=>)similarities)+)isolated,)unique)factors) ! 2)types)of)historical)explanation) *> Systematic)+)structural) *> Historical)action,)intention)+)influences) ! ! ! ! ! Longitudinal)v.)latitudinal) Convergence)v.)divergence) Histoire(croisee)[)entangled)histories)=>)intersection) Histoire(comparee)+)histoire(croisee)[)can)be)compatible)=>)need)each)other) 'Entangled)histories')[)process)of)mutual)influencing) *> Comparison)is)too)mechanistic)[)yet)not)incompatible) ! Difficulty)of)binary)opposition)between)differences)+)similarities) ! Testing)of)hypotheses)[)yet)the)ceteris(paribus)clause)can)rarely)be)fulfilled) ! 4)functions) *> Heuristic)role)=>)discover)things)through)comparison) *> Contrasts)=>)yet)not)explanations) *> Analysis)of)a)hypothesis) *> Distancing)effect) ! 2)goals) *> Isolate)particular)actors)of)an)individual)case) *> Find)general)traits)to)explain)events)=>)general)developments)+)trends) ! Meaningful)question)[)how)representative)are)these)places)of)the)question's)model?) *> Themes)to)be)tested)against) *> Universal)causal)laws)v.)historical)specificity) *> Identify)problems)+)themes) *> e.g.)Do)all)communities)need)foundation)myths?) - Purpose)of)foundation)myth)[)functionalist,)strengthening)of)ruling)class) +)regional)cohesiveness) ! General)goals) *> Phenomena)may)have)similar)causal)processes) *> Discover)social)types)+)subtypes)=>)structural)characteristics) *> Identify)functions)+)their)fulfilment)=>)functionalist)view)of)social)organisation) *> Discover)historical)+)social)connections) *> Emphasise)contingency)+)difference) ! 2)fundamental)intellectual)reasons) *> Discovering)recurring)social)mechanisms)+)structures) *> Discovering)differentiating)pathways)=>)significantly)different)outcomes)in) ostensibly)similar)social)settings) ! Issues) *> Externality)of)the)observer) *> Choice)of)scale)of)comparison) *> Object)of)comparison)=>)may)only)be)relevant)for)one) *> Synchronic)v.)diachronic)logics) *> Reciprocal)interaction)of)subjects)+)objects)of)comparison) ! Halperin)et(al.)[)3)comparative)methods) *> Universal)[)general)similarities)or)differences) *> Historical)/)comparative[genetic)method)[)compares)historically)related)aspects) *> Evolutionary)comparative)ethos)[)Comte,)Spencer)+)Lubbock) - Late)C19th)reaction)against)comparison) ! Theda)Skocpol)+)Margaret)Somers)[)'The)Uses)of)Comparative)History)in)Macrosocial) Inquiry')=>)3)major)types)of)comparative)history) *> Macro[causal)analysis) *> Parallel)demonstration)of)theory) *> Contrast)of)contexts) ! Raymond)Grew)[)unit)of)nation)is)'the)single)most)important)inhibition)on)comparative) history') ! Frederick)Cooper)[)risks)of)overemphasising)connectedness) *> Particular)v.)global) ! Jurgen)Kocka)[)3)methodological)issues) *> More)cases)=>)greater)reliance)on)secondary)rather)than)primary)sources) *> Presupposes)separation)of)units)of)comparison) - Breaks)historical)elements)of)continuity)+)entanglement) *> One)cannot)compare)totalities)=>)selection,)abstraction)+)de[contextualisation ! ! ! Macaulay's)10th)chapter)[)British)exceptionalism) *> Parliamentary)government) *> Individual)liberty) *> Religious)toleration) *> Inclusion)of)the)bourgeoisie) ! Enlightenment)[)unitary)history)=>)different)stages)of)progress) ! Tocqueville)[)America)+)France)=>)democratic)future) *> 'The)nations)of)our)time)cannot)prevent)the)conditions)of)men)from)becoming) equal') ! German)exceptionalism) ! Weber)[)comparison)of)religion,)bureaucracy,)agriculture)etc.) *> Ideal)types)[)patrimonialism)(feudalism),)ancient)bureaucracy)+)modern) bureaucracy) ! Skocpol)[)3)factors)in)revolutions) *> Collapse)of)administrative)structure,)peasant)rebellions)+)divisions)in)the) political)elite) ! Kolchin)[)Russian)serfdom)v.)American)slavery)=>)defended)slavery)more)leading)to)the) Civil)War) *> Racial)distinction)between)owners)+)owned) *> Democratic)government)and)free)press) *> Confinement)of)servitude)to)a)specific)section)of)the)country) - Russia)[)autocracy) ! Sebastian)Conrad)[)Japan)v.)Europe)=>)Eurocentrism) *> 'Temporalisation)of)space')=>)modernisation)gap) ! ! *> Telos)of)the)West( March'Bloch' ! History)must)'succeed)in)establishing)explanatory)relationships)between)phenomena')=>) comparison) ! Hypothesis)testing)[)phenomenon)A)+)condition)B) ! 3)uses)of)comparative)method)=>)hypothesis)testing) *> Test)explanatory)hypotheses) *> Uniqueness)of)different)societies) *> Formulate)problems)for)research) ! Latitudinal)v.)'comparative)method)in)the)grand)manner')=>)'altogether)different') ! 'A)general)phenomenon)must)have)equally)general)causes') ! Antoine)Meillet)[)comparison)=>)universal)laws)or)historical)information) *> Universal)comparison)(I))v.)historical)comparison)(II)) ! History)of)a)single)nation)can)be)comparative) ! Denounces)nations)approach)[)yet)gives)no)formula) *> Must)be)different)social)systems)=>)insignificant)units)of)comparison?) ! Similarity)of)England)+)France)=>)similar)enclosure)in)France) ! Florence)+)Genoa)[)first)to)issue)gold)coins) *> Not)vast)wealth)+)economic)growth)=>)Venice) *> Trade)balances)with)the)Orient)[)accumulated)gold)=>)Venice)did)not

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