Historical perspectives 2

• Geschiedenis
• Middelbare school
• mavo
• Leerjaar 2

Historical perspectives

"the past is a foreign country"
How do you interpret this quote?

Vocabulary

• Perspective
  
• Worldview
  
• Presentism
  
• Context
  

Vocabulary

• Perspective
  
• Worldview
  
• Presentism
  
• Context
  

How would you feel if you sent a message to your family with important news and information about you, but you did not get a response from your family for 5 months?

Many students’ modern-day perspective will be influenced by the fact that they live in an age with near instantaneous access to information and contact with others. This is called “presentism” and should be avoided. If we truly want to understand people and groups of the past, we need to avoid presentism. We need to take an historical perspective.

Part 1: Read the following text and think about what it might have been like for people in the past to have to wait this long to receive a return message from their home country:

“In 1858 people living in the British colony of Vancouver Island waited four to five months to receive a response to a letter sent from Victoria to London, England. This meant that important news from friends and family or advice and instructions from superiors took almost one-half year to receive.”

Part 1: Read the following text and think about what it might have been like for people in the past to have to wait this long to receive a return message from their home country:

 

“In 1858 people living in the British colony of Vancouver Island waited four to five months to receive a response to a letter sent from Victoria to London, England. This meant that important news from friends and family or advice and instructions from superiors took almost one-half year to receive.”

What are some words you would use to describe how these people felt? (Hint: think about how you would feel if you didn’t hear from you friends or family in half a year)

Vocabulary

• Historical perspective: Understanding an event from the perspective of the historical people or groups at the time, rather than from our modern perspective.
• Presentism: assuming that the thoughts, feelings and attitudes of people or groups in the past were the same as our thoughts, feelings and attitudes in the present. History students should avoid this as much as possible.
  

Vocabulary

• For example, how can we know how people in 1858 would have felt about waiting 6 months to receive important information?
  
• We need to understand the historical context in which they were living. Then we can make assumptions about how they might have felt at the time.
  

Historical context

Historical context refers to the political, economic, religious, social, intellectual, artistic and technological conditions that existed during the time and place we are studying.

Let’s look at the technological context in 1858 compared to today:

Today, we are used to instant communication (texts, email, etc). But in 1858, sending letters was the fastest way to communicate over long distances.

People at the time would have understood this and would have expected long wait times between sending and receiving messages.

Knowing some of the technological context in 1858, what can we now assume about the feelings of someone who finally received a letter from their home country that took 5 months to arrive? (list at least 3 new words)

Understanding an event from the perspective of the historical people or groups at the time, rather than from our modern perspective.

1. Historical significance
2. Historical perspective
3. Historical context
4. Assumptions

Assuming that the thoughts, feelings and attitudes of people or groups in the past were the same as ours in the present.

1. Presentism
2. Historical context
3. Historical actor
4. Historical perspective

Refers to the political, economic, religious, social, intellectual, artistic and technological conditions that existed during the time and place we are studying.

1. Presentism
2. Worldview
3. Historical context
4. Assumptions

We need to understand the ____ in which they were living. Then we can ____ about how they might have felt at the time.

1. Context, make assumptiions
2. Perspective, make context
3. Context, Worldview
4. Presentism, judge

What do you see?

Assignment

Make the assignment on google classroom called: "historical perspectives part 1"