Key Issues in Historical Theory

Herman Paul is Professor of the History of the Humanities at Leiden University, the Netherlands, and an elected member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). He is the author of multiple books including Hayden White: The Historical Imagination (2011) and Historians’ Virtues: From Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century (2022).

PRAISE FOR THE FIRST EDITION"This is currently the best introduction to historical theory available in English – comprehensive, lucid and dealing in original and innovative ways with a range of key problems in the philosophy of history and historical theory. It should be read by any undergraduate studying history and will be read with great benefit by many Masters and PhD students as well as professional historians interested in historical theory. The way Herman Paul combines the problematisation of what the past is with explorations into the political, aesthetic, epistemic, and moral dimensions of historical writing is utterly convincing."Stefan Berger, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany"Key Issues in Historical Theory is one of the most absorbing and accessible history theory books that I have read recently. Paul has written a thoughtful and intelligent work about how we think about, write and read history. One of the strengths of the work, apart from its readability, is the use he makes of interesting examples to illustrate his theoretical argument, thus clearly demonstrating the relevance of theoretical reflection for historians."Claire Norton, St Mary's University, Twickenham, United Kingdom"Describing his book as 'an attractive, accessible and up-to-date guide to the field of historical theory,' Paul offers much more than an analysis of major historiographical works and ideas. His book, translated from the Dutch and introducing the ideas and processes of doing history, also introduces practical insights and the use of theories by and for historians, non-historians, and academics in general...Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries."K. Lynass, University of Maryland University College, CHOICE Review

• 1. What is historical theory? (I) 2. What is historical theory? (II) 3. Relations with the past 4. The relational subject: shaping and being shaped 5. The aesthetic relation: historical narratives 6. The political relation: making history 7. The epistemic relation (I): historical reasoning 8. The epistemic relation (II): historical explanations 9. The epistemic relation (III): truth and plausibility 10. The moral relation: lessons from the past 11. Relations management: historians' professional ethics