History is a story that tells a story. Historiography is a collection of historical research on a subject. Historiography refers to the telling of history. It requires careful analysis of multiple sources. It is simply the history and analysis of history. Historiographical essays generally focus on one topic. You can see the world from many perspectives. Sometimes, these perspectives are conflicting. It eventually helps you understand the situation.
Historiographers work to improve our understanding of the past by reconstructing it. Historiographers’ methods are relatively new and became popular and well-known in the 19th and 20th centuries. This was the time when history became a legitimate academic field and people began writing about science. Therefore, it is assumed that keeping historical records is an inherent human trait. It is because before this time, history was never a significant subject for humans for education or any other purpose for that matter, apart from texts and records based on subjects like philosophy, religion or other arts like poetry.Historiographers ask many questions. They examine the authenticity and credibility, and consider the agendas they might have. They look at where the writer is from and what their experiences were like when they wrote the accounts. They must also examine if the historian’s personal characteristics could have an impact on their view or agenda. They should also consider their gender, age or sexual orientation. It is also important for you to see what their primary sources and secondary information were. This will help you determine if your perspective could be being altered in any way. The literature must be free of prejudice, i.e. If the historian has overlooked any important details or if it creates a bias for the reader.
A historiographer may have a deep-seated distrust of the world. It is well-known that historians have an underlying bias or agenda. There is also a chance that their methods of interpretation and sources of information could be influenced by deeper beliefs or prove certain pre-existing ideas. History is not an objective subject, but rather a collection of the historian’s beliefs. Only the dates and events can be considered objective. The historian is free to decide how they interpret or perceive those facts in the mind and in writing. If we read a piece written by a historian, then we are actually reading the historical interpretation of facts and events. A historiographer is responsible for gathering these interpretations and analyzing the situation.
Storytelling is as old as humanity itself. This is an effective way to communicate and the stories are passed on to future generations. A formal, systematic study of historical texts and historiography would make an education system more effective. We would learn to analyze situations ourselves and not just rely on the literature. Studying history through the lens of historiography is a good way to get a different perspective on the world.
