Lesson 1: Introduction to History

Lesson 1 Introduction to History  Lesson Objectives 01Understand the meaning of history as an academic 02 discipline and to be familiar with the Differentiate 03 underlying primary and Appreciate the philisophy and methodology of the...

Lesson 1 Introduction to History  Lesson Objectives 01Understand the meaning of history as an academic 02 discipline and to be familiar with the Differentiate 03 underlying primary and Appreciate the philisophy and methodology of the secondary importance of discipline. historical history in the sources. social and national life of the Philippines. What is History? History History was derived from the Greek word historia, which means knowledge acquired through inquiry or investigation. History as a discipline has existed for around 2,400 years and is as old as mathematics and philosophy. History can refer to two things. First, history relates to everything that had happened in the past. Second, history also refers to a kind of research or inquiry. The second meaning is emphasized in this subject. History is a discipline or a field of study and investigation that is primarily concerned with human activities done in the past. This meaning can be broken down into three dimensions. Focus on Field of human research activities History as a kind of research and inquiry Study of the past History is more concerned with answering the question of WHY. Why? Why? Why? Similar to other fields, the historical discipline has changed in terms of its nature, significance, and purpose. The present meaning of history is a product of the discipline's evolution across time. During the time of Ancient Greek civilization, history became concerned with human activities. Herodotus - pioneered the recording the past through historical sources. He is recognized as the Father of History because he was the one who established History as a science. Thucydides - first highlighted the importance of the systematic and impartial collection of evidence as an essential prerequisite in writing history. He was known as the Father of Scientific History.  Since the earliest historical works that followed Herodotus and Thucydides were derived from written sources, then it is quite expected that the sectors whose past will figure in history are those who were in the higher level of the social ladder that included monarchs, military heroes, clergymen, scholars, nobilities, and saints. The topics written about were also the ones that were perceived to be of historical importance and, thus, were reflected on official records. These topics include revolutions, wars, conquests, and crusades.  POSITIVISM By the nineteenth century, a particular school of thought would emerge and dominate various scientific disciplines for many generations: positivism. Positivism is an essential philosophy that would serve as a vital anchor of the scientific method. It asserts that real knowledge lies in the actual observation of facts. Meaning, for an idea to be real, it must be verified with sensory experience. It should be observable by the senses and be the subject of experimentation. In history, positivism created the mantra of "no document, no history." It means that, unless the written record can support a specific historical event, then it cannot be considered as a historical fact.  POSITIVISM Positivism in history has limitations since it only relies on the present and existing documents. This loophole was recognized by historians who started using other kinds of historical sources.  Other historical sources 1. Oral tradition (epic, songs, myths, etc.) 2.Archaeology (artifacts, architecture, cultural landscapes, etc.) 3.Linguistics (languages) 4.Anthropology (human biology, culture, and society) History as a discipline has already turned into a complex and dynamic inquiry. This dynamism inevitably produced various perspectives on the discipline regarding different questions like: What is history? Why study history? And for whom should history be? HISTORIOGRAPHY  What is historiography? Historiography is simply defined as the “history of history.” While history in grade school and high school merely teaches us about the past, historiography demands that we think about how we learn and how we are taught about the past. History’s object of study is the past. Historiography’s object, on the other hand, is history itself.  History Historiography (Event in the past) (Historian’s context) Historiography in the Philippines (History of Philippine History)  Kasaysayan in Ancient Philippine Society In ancient Philippine society, our concept of history was fundamentally different. This indigenous concept is called kasaysayan, and contrary to the widely held notion, kasaysayan is not just the Filipino term for history. Its meaning, characteristics, and functions are different. Kasaysayan was derived from the root word saysay, which could mean sense or significance.  Spanish Historiography in the Philippines The notion of kasaysayan was disrupted at the dawn of Spanish colonization. The colonizers’ endeavor to break down the indigenous communal and social organization included the destruction of these communities’ oral traditions that were central to their indigenous practices and beliefs. Kasaysayan was also suppressed and replaced by new colonial systems and knowledge. The Spanish historia replaced the narrative of our civilization. Consequently, the central role was shifted from the community to the colonizers. Historia was a narrative of the foreign colonizers regarding their observation, life, and experiences in the islands. It served as articulation and justification of their policies, decisions, and overall attitude toward the natives. The language in which these narratives were written was Spanish, and the audience that the texts were intended for were their fellow Spaniards and Europeans. In ancient times, kasaysayan refers to stories that were deemed significant to the community. These stories were transmitted orally in the forms of epics, songs, and rituals. Unlike the Western concept of history, the ancient concept of kasaysayan does not only refer to records of past experiences, but also to broader stories significant to the communities such as their experiences, legends and epics that reflect communal values, spiritualities, beliefs, and worldview. The perspective that prevailed among colonizers regarding our history as an archipelago is what we call the bipartite view. Bipartite Perspective Period of Period of Light Darkness Period before the arrival Period of arrival of of Spaniards and Spaniards. Natives Christianity. Natives were became civilized when uncivilized, barbaric, and Christianity was backward. introduced. History of the Ilustrados and the Katipunan By the mid-nineteenth century, a sector of the native and mestizo population was given a chance to acquire a certain level of education that accorded them the status of ilustrado, or the enlightened. This enlightenment came from the liberal education they acquired in European of Philippine schools and universities. Their affluence and intelligence eventually led them to aspire for reforms in the colony. If the colonizers generally regarded the history of the archipelago with a bipartite view, the ilustrados viewed our history as tripartite Tripartite Perspective Period of Period of Enlightenment Prosperity Period of Darkness Future envisioned Period before the once Spain gave the arrival of Spaniards. Spanish colonialism. Filipino people Natives enjoyed People were subject to equality and freedom, equality, unjust taxation, slave freedom. and dignity. labor, repression, and discrimination. Renowned ilustrados such as Jose Rizal, Marcelo H. Del Pilar, and Graciano Lopez Jaena wrote about their country from this perspective. History of the Ilustrados and the Katipunan The Katipuneros, like the ilustrados, also regarded history of the Philippines with the tripartite view. The third period, for them, was only achievable through an armed revolution. Unlike the ilustrados who had written their works exclusively in Spanish to gain the attention of the sympathetic Spaniards, Katipunan wrote almost exclusively in Filipino because they were rallying for the support of the countrymen for the revolution. American Historiography in the Philippines The American colonial period was an introduction to a new tradition of scholarship and historical writing primarily caused by the concept of benevolent assimilation, the guiding framework of the American occupation of the Philippines. While the Spaniards made education limited to the privileged few, the Americans introduced public instruction and made it available to nearly every Filipino. They believed that public education would speed up the process of assimilation, convincing Filipinos that Americanization of the society, culture, and politics is beneficial. They wanted the Filipinos to think like the Americans. American Historiography in the Philippines The implication to historiography was most apparent in the shift of language from Spanish to English. The Americans made teaching English an essential part of their public education policy, making it easy to instill an American consciousness among the colonial subjects.  Historiography in the 20th Century The twentieth century became the period when history turned into a professional academic discipline in the Philippines. Unsurprisingly, the institutionalized history in educational institutions carried an American perspective since the Americans strictly controlled the education system. By the 1960s and 1970s, historians of the University of the Philippines would pioneer a shift in perspective. Philippine Nationalist Historiography As history continuously developed as an academic discipline in the Philippines throughout the twentieth century, more and more people joined the foray and specialized in history. Filipino historians pioneered a movement in writing history that is pro-Filipino, nationalist, progressive, and hence, pro-people, pro-masses, and pro-poor.  Philippine Nationalist Historiography Teodoro Renato Reynaldo Ileto Zeus Salazar Agoncillo Constantino Pantayong Pananaw and Bagong Kasaysayan By the mid-1970s, Zeus Salazar, a member of the U.P. Department of History, introduced a new philosophy that would guide a new historical and social scientific scholarship tradition. Salazar contends that despite the surge of nationalist perspective in historical writing, our historical narrative remains targeted to the English-speaking sectors of the society that consequently excludes the larger masses. Moreover, the works of the most nationalist historians were still written in English. Pantayong Pananaw and Bagong Kasaysayan For Salazar, to truly reclaim our history, a fundamental change in perspective is necessary. History should be processed, written, and taught in the Filipino language for the Filipino people. Such perspective is what Salazar would call Pantayong Pananaw of the from-us-for-us (inclusive) perspective. HISTORICAL SOURCES CLASSIFICATION OF HISTORICAL SOURCES 1. Primary Sources 2. Secondary Sources  PRIMARY SOURCES Primary sources are those sources produced simultaneously as the event, period, or subject being studied. For example, suppose a historian wishes to explore the Commonwealth Constitution Convention of 1935. In that case, potential primary sources can include the minutes of the convention, newspaper clippings, Philippine Commission reports of the U.S. Commissioners, records of the convention, the draft of the Constitution, and even photographs of the event. Eyewitness accounts of convention delegates and their memoirs can also be used as primary sources. The same goes for other subjects of historical study. Archival documents, artifacts, memorabilia, letters, census, and government records, among others, are the most common examples of primary sources. PRIMARY SOURCES  SECONDARY SOURCES On the other hand, secondary sources are sources produced by an author who relied on primary sources to write the material. In other words, secondary sources are products of historical research that other historians use for additional information or as background to their study. For example, on the subject of the Philippine Revolution of 1896, students can read Teodoro Agoncillo's Revolt of the Masses: The Story of Bonifacio and the Katipunan, published originally in 1956. The Philippine Revolution happened in the last years of the nineteenth century, while Agoncillo published his work in 1956. Thus, Agoncillo's Revolt of the Masses is a secondary source because it was produced at a different time by a person who was not an eyewitness of said period. SECONDARY SOURCES  HISTORICAL CRITICISM Many documents have primary and secondary segments. For instance, examining a newspaper as a historical source entails a discerning mind to identify its primary and secondary components. A news item written by a witness of an event is considered as a primary source, while a feature article is usually considered as a secondary material. TWO LEVELS OF HISTORICAL CRITICISM  TWO LEVELS OF HISTORICAL CRITICISM 1. External Criticism 2. Internal Criticism  1. EXTERNAL CRITICISM Answers concerns and questions pertinent to the authenticity of a historical source by examining its physical characteristics and identifying who composed the historical material, locating when and where the historical material was produced, and establishing the material’s evidential value.  2. INTERNAL CRITICISM Deals with the credibility and reliability of the content of a given historical source. This kind of criticism focuses on understanding the substance and message that the historical material wants to convey by examine how the author frame the intent and meaning of a composed material.  Marcos WWII war medals Code of Kalantiaw THANK YOU!