As the first entry for our Kean University Department of History HistoryBlog, I thought it appropriate to address a question professional historians and students alike get quite often. Most people have no idea. They have gotten an odd sense of it through movies like National Treasure, and of course, anything with Indiana Jones. It’s easy for accountants, for example, to say what they do, same for astronomers, or firemen, or cooks. How do historians answer this question?
In its simplest terms, the work of historians is the careful and thoughtful study of those elements which make up this thing we call vaguely ‘the past.’ Those elements are in large part the written record (though artifacts and photos and music as well). Historians plow through the mountains of paperwork left behind by the human race. We call these Primary Sources. We study the large and the small, the significant and the seemingly insignificant: the good, the bad, and the ugly. We do go on adventures and we do battle evil doers, but mostly our time is spent travelling the world to go in libraries and archives so we can read the words of the people we are studying and the data of the events we are analyzing. We spend lots of time reading through the details few others look at or even know exist. We read the letters and correspondences, the note books, and random scribblings of the past. We follow loud screams, quiet whispers, the seductive promises of lovers, and the inspiring words of heroes. We have heard the pitiless cries of victims in the night, the sharp bark of the evil and the abusive, from earlier today back to the dawn of time. This is an attempt to get some idea of what happened, why it happened, and who did it. We do this so we can learn from it.
While looking at this material, historians ask questions about it. We look for connections, putting our findings into context, and doing it all according to the procedures of scholarly research. At the heart of this process is the tacit understanding that it is done without preconceived ideas. We try to let the facts and evidence guide us to possible answers as best we can. Those answers are determined regardless of the political, religious, or cultural consequences they might have. We are always ready, however, to change our position should new evidence come along. The understanding of the past is not static, it evolves as we learn new things.
We search for knowledge. Knowledge can elevate and it can infuriate. It can challenge the status quo and undermine deeply held convictions. It can unmask criminals and topple empires. It can support the voiceless and accuse the loud and oppressive. Part of the job of the historian to bring all this out into the open.
The big role of the historian in society is to remind us of where we came from, not only as a society but also as individuals. This knowledge helps us make better informed decisions about how to conduct our lives, and how to avoid getting into trouble. When we stick our finger into an electrical outlet, because we thought it would be a good idea, then get shocked, history helps us learn not to do that again. The historian warns us not to stick our finger into the electrical outlet over and over. Unfortunately, we are not always successful at doing that.
Some learn the lessons we have to teach others do not. Some simply do not get it, while others know we are right, but intentionally refuse to hear, or disparage our work. This is often the result of religious or political concerns. Historical facts and evidence can be deeply troubling to some. They desire the past to have been a certain way. When the facts of the past do not line up with their desires they try to manipulate and hijack the past for their own agendas. History is not about making you feel good about yourself. You don’t get to ignore facts because they do not sit well with you. Historians fight against this.
Being an historian is incredibly fun. It is also exciting and even adventuresome. We fight to preserve facts and evidence; we fight to preserve rationality no matter the cost. In the twenty-first century we need historians more than ever. Historians do not just know the facts, they know how to analyze and interpret them. In that way historians work to save the universe.
That’s what historians do.
That’s how you answer that question.
Dr. Brian Regal
Associate Professor - History of Science, Technology and Medicine