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What Is History

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Submitted By liam182
Words 1323
Pages 6
1

Liam Davidson
220131049
HINQ100

Question 1
Having considered E.H Carr’s chapter on ‘The Historian and His Facts’, and Arthur
Marwick's discussion of 'Historical Facts and Historical Sources', as well as some of the other resources provided, what are some of the issues facing historians in the use of historical evidence? Question 2
Think of an historical event, person or theme that is of interest to you. Find at least one primary source, and one secondary source of relevance to your topic. Identify the sources using the correct referencing style (see the Humanities Teaching and Learning Policies
Booklet). Describe your search for these materials and what you learnt from the exercise.

2

Question 1
Historians inevitably encounter some issues when using historical evidence. From finding sources and discerning fact from fiction to interpreting sources and placing them in historical context, the historian’s search for adequate sources is often not a simple one and can be fraught with pitfalls and issues that the historian must overcome.

The choice of topic is an immediate issue facing an historian. The possibilities are endless as any part of history is an option for research. Issues when choosing a topic a both professional and personal, will there be sufficient sources on the chosen topic and where can they be located? Is the topic relevant? The personal opinions of a historian come into play when choosing their topic, do they agree with what they will be researching? Do they like topic?
Questions such as these must be asked by the historian before undertaking certain work.
The opinion of the historian brings another important issue. A strong opinion can easily affect ones work. Leaving out or only including certain facts to push an opinion across is something that must be avoided. Objectivity is essential when researching

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