Product Description

In this volume, English historian Richard Evans offers a defence of the importance of his craft. At a time of deep scepticism about our ability to learn anything from the past, even to recapture any serious sense of past cultures and ways of life, Evans shows us why history is both possible and necessary. His demolition of the wilder claims of post-modern historians, who deny the possibility of any realistic grasp of history, seeks to be witty and well-balanced. He takes us into the historians' workshop to show us just how good history gets written, and explains the deadly political dangers of losing a historical perspective on the way we live our lives. This new edition contains an extensive afterword by the author.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #16626 in Books
• Published on: 2001-01-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

Customer Reviews

A brain-saving study
I have re-read this book several times while in education, and it has restored my enthusiasm for academic work at times when the prevalence of post-structuralist theory in universities has left me thoroughly despondent. Evans is an acute critic, generous as well as exacting, and his writing is entertaining even when covering the most arcane philosophy. This book successfully unites a keen awareness of the theory of history with a pragmatic appreciation of its practice. Members of any discipline in which reading and writing are important (I come from an English literature background) can learn a lot, and take a lot of reassurance, from this rebuttal to relativism. Incidentally, the final chapter of the revised edition, in which Evans takes on his unfriendly critics, is one of the funniest shows of debunking available. A splendid book.

Superb discrediting of postmodernism
Evans' book is not only a superb general introduction to the idea of history, written in a non-stuffy or academic style, but a useful reminder of why it is such a daft idea to treat history as if it were literary theory, and attempt to view it through postmodern eyes. I read this just after I read Keith Jenkins' somewhat depressing introduction to postmodernist history - 'Rethinking History', and it was therefore an extremely uplifiting experience (especially as I was about to start a history degree at university!) Incidentally, Jenkins' response to this book in 'Why History?: Ethics and Postmodernity' is worth checking out, though I found it a little weak and seeming to miss vital points about historiography, as postemodernists so often seem to.

fascinating, funny and witty
In Defence of History gives a fascinating and often witty insight into the established standard text for the undergraduate historian. Namely E H Carr's What is History? Where Carr provided an excellent, although in places difficult to read manual for historical research. R J Evans rather than providing a new way, questions the validity of Carr's method for establishing what is a historical fact. In Defence of History follows an identical format, including the exact chapter headings found in What is History?, which allows easy comparison between texts. In essence R J Evans offers nothing new to the process of historical research and in this sense cannot be counted as a great historian such as Carr and Elton. He does however offer an easily accessible re work of Carr's established theory. Evans includes a brief discussion of the problems post modernism presents for history and historians. Although tends to take the view that history does not need defending against the revisionist attack. Ostensibly In Defence of History is a pleasure to read and valuable to historians either professional or amateur. Although in my opinion it will not replace E.H Carr's What is history? But rather be used in conjunction with, to provide the best result.