The Historian's Craft | 
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Customer Reviews:
• From One History To Another 10 July, 2007
Journalists and historians have the daunting task of answering the five W's. However, Marc Bloch answers history's who, what, where, when, and why in his somewhat legendary book pertaining to the understanding of the historical method, THE HISTORIAN'S CRAFT, like a stream of thought or a conversation with the reader. Although Bloch's examination is not meant to be a complete analysis, he provides a general theoretical and philosophical discussion as it relates to history that is insightful and thought provoking.
I happened to come across this book, not by reading it in one of my history classes, but by looking at the footnotes and bibliographical information embedded in several scholarly articles I read where the mention of the book kept appearing. It is only now that I have had the chance to read this classic book. Bottom line, Bloch summarizes and observes historiography in 20/20 hindsight e.g., "history was a whole, that no period and no topic could be understood except in relation to other periods and topics" (ix). And ironically, Bloch writes from a pre-1945 perspective and did not complete the book as a result of his sudden passing during World War II; one can imagine what his perspective would have turned out to be if he had lived.
Indeed, Bloch was inclined to examine and research history from an interdisciplinary perspective. And although the subject of history has been described as a foreign land, it is a vast landscape with limitless boundaries. A bulk of Bloch's discussion is based on his training, which took him from Ancient to Modern European history. But had he completed this piece of work, as one reads the concluding pages, possibly he may have delved deeper towards the other side of the globe towards Eastern civilization as well as the industrialist Western civilization. Thus Bloch took a broad historical perspective and implemented it within his discipline as an Economic historian who specialized in Medieval history, but interestingly managed to teach the economic development of the United States during his last years of teaching.
After reading THE HISTORIAN'S CRAFT, aspiring historians or the curious will find that their work has only just begun. Readers will be confronted with the theoretical and philosophical questions, but will also see why history is a part of the humanities as well as a craft that can be hypothesized and shaped to a particular interpretation, be it definitive or revisionist. Bloch makes several anecdotal comments, but this is one that is timeless: "Misunderstanding of the present is the inevitable consequence of ignorance of the past. But a man may wear himself out just as fruitlessly in seeking to understand the past, if he is totally ignorant of the present" (43). This is one of the reasons why this book is recommended for supplemental or essential reading.
- Reviewed by customer ID: AFJFXN42RZ3G2
• Epitaph To A Learned Man 21 October, 2007
Marc Bloch--veteran of World Wars I and II, historian, professor, writer, French patriot--entreats us in this spare volume to maintain our objectivity, to interpret history with the skepticism of the journalist and the scientific method of the researcher. He identifies some of the pitfalls, the improperly translated idiom, the anthropomorphism of time and place, and relying too heavily on the written accounts of earlier historians, as means by which the understanding of historical events can be skewed. And history must be viewed as a continuum, a rolling cause-and-effect leading from then until now and beyond, events which seldom fit easily into our need to categorize them by fixed dates. But then, historians already know these things, so of what value is "The Historian's Craft" today?
There is a poignancy to this book that Marc Bloch may not have anticipated from his moment in time, but looking back toward the era in which he wrote, the reader can see "The Historian's Craft" as Bloch's attempt to instill order and sanity into the turbulent and almost inexplicably surreal fall of France during World War II. I interpret this book as his salve, his struggle to maintain objectivity during the madness he observed as the Nazis overwhelmed his country. Older than fifty now, having earned the right to a quiet life in academia but refusing to leave his beloved France, Block joined the Resistance, fought against the Nazis, was captured, tortured and killed. And so, "The Historian's Craft" becomes a record to help us interpret Marc Bloch's life and the era of occupied France, as well as lessons in craft from a learned man.
Bloch wrote: ...a generation represents only a relatively short phase. Longer phases are called civilizations."
- Reviewed by customer ID: AC31II9459P5G
• Primer On Historic Methodology 06 August, 2007
This book is a primer on Historic Methodology for any aspiring historian, neophyte, dabbler in historic issues, and - perhaps most important of all - a concise road map to understanding the nuances of the historians craft. Furthermore, this book is often used in graduate programs of history or those in need of developing their skills at historic methodology or refining their historic lens as objective observers. Marc Bloch was one of the seminal historic scholars of our age. And his insights on how one reads history or attempts to read history clearly challenge personal bias with reading the tracks left by our ancestors and what their intentions, values, and ideals meant in their own time and for audiences long lost to our contemporary evaluations.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A2K6ZNVJ380K53
• A Historian's Craft 10 February, 2004
Marc Bloc's style of writing (or the translation) is extremely complicated. At many times, I had to re-read many paragraphs two to three times, just to get a gist of what he was trying to express. Nonetheless, Marc Bloc displays that same complexity in the ideas he wishes to express. Although he apologizes for the lack of accuracy in some of his examples, he makes no such concessions on his views. Highly authoritative on controversial topics, like evidence, forgeries, and the perennial question of "why study history?", Marc Bloc attempts to use the subject of history as a platform to discuss other social issues i.e. economics, philosophy, abeit in an indirect manner.Also, his chapter on Nomenclature deserves a good thorough read . It's very mind boggling and incisive. Although his final chapter on Historical Analysis has been dealt with by other historians like Carr, it does convey Bloc's passion for history - a trait which will certainly rub off on any history enthusiast.Given its linguistic style and the subject matter, The Historian's Craft is not the book you would want to take to bed with.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A1EPE3GZURUQF4
• Reflections By A Great Historian 26 February, 2004
This book of reflections by a master historian (and victim of the Nazis, which cut short his illustrious career), is not of the same order magnitude of a philosopher-historian like R. G. Collingwood (who made use of Bloch's work on France in the medieval period), but it contains many insights and historical remarks that make it interesting and informative.I have read and enjoyed this book for years and think you will find it well worth reading and re-reading. The following famous lines from the book illustrate the zest and love he has for the subject:"The good historian is like the giant of the fairy tale. He knows that wherever he catches the scent of human flesh, there his quarry lies." I have it in French, and the English translation, and highly recommend it.
- Reviewed by customer ID: A2QE127I8RX72P
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