I’ve been thinking, and… considering recent practice in Digital History and the study of “Historical Memory,” maybe History doesn’t need to be limited to B.A. and M.A. tracks. First, with the expansion of Digital History, perhaps, if the instruction in Digital History practice goes beyond how to use HTML, XHTML, XML, Dreamweaver, blogs as a data-dump, etc., etc. (and does little more than show the way to deliver the same “print on paper type-content” on the Web), maybe there can be opportunities for some great B.S. and M.S. academic tracks.
What I’m thinking here is that, in the case of Digital History, more focus needs to be placed, first on the use of typography and color (e.g., using the advantages of using certain background colors to enhance the learning experience; I’m thinking beyond simple design, but rather how it is tied to cognitive psychology); and second, there should be an emphasis on taking a cognate in a science that can be applied to the learning experience. Cognitive psychology comes to mind, but even that, by itself, isn’t strong enough. Instead, perhaps a cognate in HCI or Human Factors; the point would be for the Digital Historian to understand 1) interaction design and 2) usability standards. Coupling this with skills in Web design, a historian would have some incredibly powerful tools for content delivery, beyond just putting down findings on paper.
I also see an incredible tool available to teachers. Some might see the Web as replacing the teacher (and there are, in fact, articles on this issue), but that’s not my thought here. Instead, I see the potential of the Web in supplenting classroom instruction. Taking a little from UPS (“What can Brown do for you?”), I ask, “what can the Web do for you?” How can typography, color and imagery increase a student’s retention of content; retention that might not otherwise occur through classroom instruction or reading a book?
As far as “Historical Memory” goes, I think I need to clarify. I’m not thinking in terms of ”experiential” historical memory (e.g., a person who was at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 has memory of his/her experience at that historic event), but I’m thinking in terms of “imagined” and/or “ancestor-based” memory (which some might not even consider real “memory” at all). This type of memory might even be called “assumed memory based on limited knowledge of one’s ancestor,” but naming it is the least of my concerns right now. The idea in this is that there is a scientific understanding that needs to be incorporated into, for example, the study of ”Civil War Memory.” We’re writing about “memory,” but do we have all of the tools necessary to make a complete assessment? Reading a book on cognitive psychology might be a start, but, as historians, we need to have a better understanding of memory as a term from the practice of cognitive psychology. Thus, an M.S. in History, with a science cognate in cognitive psychology would make for an incredibly “well-armed” “Civil War Memory” Historian.
Sherree
September 29, 2008
Hi Robert,
Thanks for this post.
I finally accessed the records at the Library of Virginia after figuring out what a tiff file is, and you are correct–some of the records are almost illegible. I found the information that I needed, however, and in this case, the information confirmed the oral history that prompted the search, which was refreshing.
The Internet has indeed changed the way we live and think and it can be a tremendous tool if used correctly. I am a lay person, and not a professional historian or even an amateur historian, just someone interested in the past for a number of reasons.
I have learned now that many things that I thought were true, are not, and I am processing the information. The simple rule I am using to ensure accuracy is to go to the source document, if possible, and let the men and women from the past speak for themselves. This works, it seems, for historical figures, since men and women in the public sphere say what they say for specific reasons, and what they say and think affects public life both during the time period in which they lived, and in subsequent history that extends beyond their lives. I do not believe that the same is true of the letters and diaries of private men and women, however, since those letters and diaries were never meant to be read by the general public. Perhaps you have some thoughts on this issue. I don’t quite understand the modern use of private letters of private individuals as an indication of social and cultural identity. I am talking about intimate, detailed letters that were never meant to be read by anyone but the recipient of the letter, or, in the case of a diary, by the person who wrote the diary. A man or woman’s understanding of an issue can change in a matter of days or minutes sometimes (witness the on the air changing personalities of most politicians, lol) and the entire personality of any individual cannot be determined by a few spoken or written words. Yet, a letter is just that–a few written words–and those words are frozen in time and out of context. Again, the letters and thoughts of public figures are fair game. The private soldier in the field, though–is it appropriate to use his private letters? How does the academic community see this, is my question, if you feel it is appropriate to address the issue. I remember reading the diary of Anne Frank and how powerful that diary was and is, and how poignant. I also know how powerful the slave narratives are. Again, though, the soldiers from the field–Union and Confederate–who wrote home to their wives, daughters, and parents? I again think that Walt Whitman had it right. We will never know what those men really thought or what they suffered, no matter how many of their private letters we read. There are other ways to prove decisively that slavery was the cause of the war, that the South fought the wrong war, and that we, as a nation, must finally achieve what Reconstruction failed to achieve and end the war at last, it seems to me. I am not an historian, however, so that is for those of you in the academic community to decide. Just some thoughts. Thanks for listening. I know that you are in the middle of your studies right now, so no immediate answer is anticipated, if you do find it appropriate to comment.
Sherree
cenantua
September 29, 2008
Hello again Sherree!
Speaking of letters, I know what you mean. Actually, this leads to something else that I have encountered. There is a Confederate soldier, who was a close friend of one of my gg grandfathers. They both served in the 7th Va. Cav. Well, to make a long story short, looking at the service records of this man, you would think little of this man’s motivations for service (except the fact that he enlisted in 1863… this poses another issue for discussion at length in a post all to itself). Anyway, I knew the man’s service record well. However, I became aware of letters sent to his wife. For the most part, they are a soldier’s letters. However, there are at least four instances where he states that he would sacrifice a great deal to leave the army… yet he stayed… and was killed at Brandy Station.
The point here is that we are exposed to limited elements of a person’s character in say, his military record alone. Letters offer another dimension. Then again, I have seen where soldiers were aware of the possibility that others would see the letters and held what may have been their real feelings in-check.
Sorry, I think I went astray from your comments, but it led me down another path (I call this “hypertextual thought”)
Sherree
September 30, 2008
Hi Robert,
Oh, lol! I know what you mean about “hypertextual thought”. You begin with an idea in mind and a point you are trying to make, then one thought leads to another and then another and still another, and before you know it, you are somewhere else entirely from the designated point that you had hoped to reach.
Well, I understand what you said, so I am going to have to hypertext think this line of reasoning for a while myself.
Have a good day. I ordered your book, Tragedy in the Shenandoah yesterday. I am looking forward to reading it.
Sherree