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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF HISTORY
Ernest N. Feind
Course: Education 46
February 9, 1924
Outline
Bibliography
Introduction
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Snedden, "Problems of
Secondary Education". New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1917.
Judd, 1933: "Psychology of
High-School Subjects". New York: Ginn and Co., 1915.
Thorndike, Lynn, "History of
Medieval Europe", Introductory Chapter. New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1917.
Turner, "Europe 1450-1879",
Introductory Chapter. New York: Doubleday and Page Co., 1923.
Robinson, "The New History".
New York: Macmillan Co., 1912.
Pillsbury, "Essentials of Psychology".
New York: Macmillan Co., 1921.
Outline
OUTLINE
I. Definition Of History
II. Aims of History
A. Training of chronological judgment
B. Appreciation of present and construction of future
C. Nationalism versus Internationalism
D. Training in judgment
III. Psychological Factors Involved
A. Mental perception of distance
B. Chronological judgment
C. Imagination
D. Memory
E. Moral Judgment
F. Causal Judgment
IV. Reorganization
A. Texts
B. Courses
C. Methods
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF HISTORY
In taking up a study of the Psychology of History we shall proceed from the
practical standpoint. There is a certain fascination and pleasure in the study
of history for the person who has plenty of leisure time in which to carry on his
study. However, in the high school where so many subjects are claiming the
attention of the student, and where only a limited amount of time can be given
to each one, we must approach each subject with the purpose of getting the maximum
of real value in the time which can be spent on the subject.
Recently there has been a great deal of criticism of our present system of
history teaching. Some writers have are advocating a revision of our ideas
concerning history teaching with a view to eliminating much of what has been
considered essential in the past. Undoubtedly, much criticism is deserved; but on
the other hand, there have been very few statements of what is desired and
expected of a course in history. This makes it very difficult to organize history
courses that will give satisfaction to all. When the student in unable to meet
certain situations as they arise, there is a tendency on the part of some to
suggest radical measures. Before we can expect history to meet all the requirements
of the present time, we must have a clear statement as to what the aims of history
should be. When we have this clearly in mind we can study the psychological factors
involved, and finally arrive at some standard whereby we may proceed to reorganize
methods, textbooks and courses.
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I. Definition Of History
History has to do with the past of humanity. Every phase of man's life and
every human interest of the present has its background and previous development
which may be historically considered. We have many kinds of history, such as
history of art, architecture, diplomacy, religion, etc. History, as we shall treat
it and in the sense that it is ordinarily used, concerns itself primarily with the
past of mankind. It aims to understand and picture the life of races and various
other groups of mankind throughout the course of long ages. This definition,
which is given in a modern textbook, is a very inclusive one and quite beyond the
possibilities of an ordinary course. Not everything in the past can be taken up,
and it follows that there must be some selection out of the vast storehouse of
material. At once the problem arises — what should be presented?
Writers of histories are victims of tradition; they must write what other
historians have written. A dissipated courtier may be allotted a chapter, while
the destruction of a race is left unrecorded. Some recent critics have accused
historians of being narrow. Robinson says, "When we consider the vast range of
human interests, our histories furnish us with a sadly inadequate and misleading
review of the past, and it might almost seem as if historians had joined in a
conspiracy to foster a narrow and relatively unedifying conception of true scope
and intent of historical study." More of the industrial and economic aspect of
history undoubtedly should be given, but this must be left until later in this
paper. Certainly, the things in the past receiving the greatest emphasis were
wars, acquisition of territory, lives of kings and generals, etc. Today, some of
the more radical critics would do away entirely with these things which have been
stressed so much in the past. Surely some reorganization is necessary. However,
in reorganization we must be careful that we do not defeat the real purpose of
history and transform it into something else.
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II. Aims of History
Snedden seems to have confounded history with a study of Civics when he says,
"It is the conviction of the writer that the changes which will take place in
history teaching in secondary schools will be of a revolutionary, rather than
of an evolutionary, nature. It is his belief that we shall in the future discard,
to a large extent, the use of the chronological order in teaching this subject;
that our emphasis will center primarily in the contemporaneous, and only
incidentally in the past; and that the general outcome will be the organization
of a new secondary-school subject which we may call, for lack of a better term,
'social science', the primary object of which shall be to enable the pupil to
interpret the present and to construct the future, so far as that is practicable
in a scientific and reasonable manner."
He goes on to say that our teaching of social science in this way would be done
primarily with the object of preparing boys and girls to become men and women
capable of exercising larger civic functions. This is largely the place of a study
civil government. Perhaps this should be extended and enlarged considerably,
but the study of the past still holds a vital place in the curriculum today, and
I believe it should do so. History make an excellent background for the teaching
of the duties and functions of citizenship, but it would be a mistake to substitute
that study entirely for the study of the past. We may accept the definition of
the aims of history and still regret Snedden's idea of eliminating the past.
The present has its causes in the past and is so intricately rooted in what has
gone before that we cannot understand the present without a knowledge of the
past.Let us take our own political parties for example. The teaching today is
away from party lines, and certain types of lecturers and writers would have us
believe that nothing but evil ever came from political parties. A study of
the origin of such parties, however, brings out the fact that they were not
super-imposed upon an unsuspecting and innocent public, but were the natural
outgrowth of a system that was leading up to a saner, more just type of
government. If he considers points such as these— the evil as well as the
good — he will be enabled to better interpret the present, and shape causes
for desired effects in the future. As to the chronological order being left
out, — it should be done to some extent; but we must remember that certain
dates are necessary and a gradual growth of institutions must be studied if
they are to be rightly evaluated now. Also, unless history is to be eliminated
entirely, students must be trained in chronological judgment.
History should not consist in a mere list of dates. No doubt, in the past we
have required student to memorize too many dates which have been of no value
whatsoever to them. Nevertheless, it is necessary to memorize certain dates if
the past is to be understood. Thus, in United States History, the student
should know the time when the outstanding events of our national life took
place. A few dates such as: 1775, 1803, 1812, 1861, 1914, are a necessary part
of the intellectual equipment of a citizen of the United States.
What are the aims of history? As mentioned before, we must have a clear
statement of aims and purposes if we are to proceed to a study of the psychological
factors involved, so that we may have a standard for reorganization. Today,
the emphasis is on the practical and useful. We have a tendency toward intolerance
for a person who has a store of pure knowledge, without the ability to apply and
use that knowledge.
Snedden has given us a statement of the aims of a subject which he would name
"social science", and we may well take that as a beginning statement of the aims
history teaching. He says the aim should be "to enable the student to interpret
the present and construct the future". Along with this we must have an appreciation
of the present and a constructive attitude at all times. This, in turn, involves
sound judgment, and it is just at this point that we arrive at one of the
principal duties of history teaching, namely, to train the student in his judgment
of cause and effect, his moral judgment, and his chronological judgment. Now, if
we are to draw from the past, as I believe we must do, it follows that the student's
attitude toward the past must be one of sympathetic understanding, and at the
same time it must be a critical attitude. The student's attitude must be sympathetic
in that he must transport himself into the past in order to secure a thorough
understanding of past events. He must be critical so that no detail of the situation
may escape him and leave him with a one-sided view and of course an incorrect
estimate of cause and effect.
Heretofore, nationalism has been one of the chief aims of history teaching. A
healthy nationalism is desirable, and within certain limits may be a legitimate
aim of history teaching. However, care must be taken to leave the student with
his mind unprejudiced, so that he may be able to approach the study of history in
an impartial way. The old idea of "my country, right or wrong" must give way to
an impartial justice if the student is to be able to interpret the present and
construct the future. Blind patriotism is narrowing and inhibits just criticism
of existing national evils. On the other hand, internationalism as an aim may be
too broad, and may be detrimental to a nation's own best interests. The problem
seems to be one of keeping a proper balance between nationalism on the one hand
and internationalism on the other. The student's interests must be broad enough
to enable him to see beyond the limits of his own country, but not so broad as to
make him lose interest in affairs close to home. this again calls for a trained
mind that is able to judge fairly and accurately.
The study of cause and effect is a field in which history should function. The
student must be trained to examine a situation from every angle, and to note the
effect of causes upon results. We are told that history does not repeat itself—
that it never has and never will. Without entering into a detailed discussion of
this point, we are safe in saying that there is a strong probability that like
causes will produce like effects, other things being equal. This being true,
will lead us into a detailed study of the past, especially of those events in the
past that show a marked similarity to present situations, or to events in the
past that led up to present conditions. Perhaps we should not even limit
ourselves to past events that have some easily recognizable relationship to the
present. If there is anything in the past that will furnish a mental training
that may be useful today, or in the future, we may certainly feel justified in
using that in our study of history. However, as will be pointed out later, the
past is too rich in events of importance to allow us to take up each one. It
would be found more profitable to limit the course to a comparative few and then
concentrate upon these. In this way a thorough study of cause and effect could
be made.
In our present course we are trying to cover too much ground, and the haste
with which recitations are carried on is not apt to train the student in
analysis. Furthermore, it will leave him with very few valuable mental habits
as well as a scanty and ill-organized store of knowledge.
To summarize the aims then, we would say that history [teaching] should train
the mind of the student so that he will be analytical in his habits of viewing
a situation, with a purpose of arriving at some definite conclusion that will
help him to interpret and appreciate the present, and build a future that shall
excel the past and present.
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III. Psychological Principles
In the process of looking back over periods of time, the student experiences
something that seems to be related in some degree to space perception. Perhaps
we should call mit a mental perception of distance. The phrase which we sometimes
use, "looking into the past", suggests to the student's mind the act of looking
back over a long stretch of time that leads up to the present. It is as though
he were standing on a mountain and looking back over the path he has followed in
arriving at his present station. The student of history is standing upon the
height of present intellectual achievement and material advance; and viewing the
path humanity has taken at its present situation. It is impossible for him to
see everything in the past of mankind; some things the historian has omitted,
others fade into the dim distance of prehistoric obscurity. However, from the
great mass of events of the past, certain things force themselves upon his
attention. Here, a terrific struggle for the rights of the common people took
place; here, a battle or war was fought which had a far reaching effect upon
humanity; here, a great champion arose and defended the oppressed.
The student uses some such scheme as this in an attempt to remember events in
their proper relation to each other. Perhaps he thinks of the past as passing
a certain point in the form of a procession; perhaps he thinks of it as a
topographical map, broken by mountain ranges which are separated by stretches
of a more level country. He may use such a device unconsciously, but very likely
he uses something of the sort. He must do so to help secure and retain a
comprehensic view of the course he is pursuing. It is certain that he must have
some method of keeping the proper relation between various events in mind, if he
is to escape a hopeless mental tangle. Just such a tangle results from some of
our present courses. This is shown by the difficulty some students have in
remembering dates. In one case the class placed the beginning of the Civil War
anywhere between 1860 and 1870. The teacher should have used some device
calculated to help the student recall that date. Usually, the students are left
to form their own devices for aiding memory. It would be better to have the
teacher, at the beginning of the course, give a simple survey of the course,
mentioning the principal events without going into detail. By keeping this outline
in mind, the student would be able to relate other events mentioned in the course
to their proper places. The average student soon forgets the mass of minor details,
and remembers only the main outline. the emphasis should be on this outline all
thru the course, and then other facts can be placed in their proper place by
referring to this general outline. If the general outline were stressed, students
would not be so likely to form wrong conceptions; for example, one high school
student said that Napoleon sailed down the Nile with Cleopatra.
To take a concrete instance, let us see what sort of an outline we might use
in a history course. We will take American History as a course in which we are
all interested. Of the period before discovery we can say nothing, and the
details of savage life among the Indians must be left for later study. We then
begin our outline with 1492 and the period of discovery and exploration which
followed. No details are given as to names or dates. Next we have the period
of settlement. Here the date to remember would be 1607. Again, no details are
given save that England, France, and Spain were interested. Between 1607 and
1775, we have the period of development, but we remember the date, 1775. Here is
noted the fact that America became free from Great Britain. The rest of the
outline would be something like this:
1789—
Constitution adopted.
1803—
Louisiana purchased.
1812—
War with England.
1861—
Civil War.
1898—
War with Spain.
1917—
World War.
This outline may be criticized for giving undue prominence to wars. This is a
criticism which may justly be made of our histories in their present form.
Without doubt, there are events other than wars which could be used in giving the
skeleton of an American History course. The purpose of this outline is not to
give a model outline for the subject, but rather is meant to be suggestive of
what could be done in reorganizing the course to meet the needs of the high
school student. The idea is to give the student certain events in their proper
place in this path of humanity, so that he may relate other incidents to these
events, and in this way be able to place the details, which are to be worked
out later, approximately in the right place. This would do away with a great
deal of the memorizing of dates. The students in studying about Lincoln-Douglas
debates would be expected to place them, not in a certain year, but in the period
just preceding the Civil War.
It is doubtful whether any real value is attained by remembering a great many
dates. Some of the time spent in memorizing dates might well be spent in a careful
study of cause and effect. Indeed, it might be found profitable to abandon a
great many of the details now taken up in in history, and to spend the time in a
detailed study of some of the major movements or events, with a purpose of
training students to become more analytical.
Further consideration of of these ideas regarding dates in history, will bring
out the fact that chronological judgment must be trained. If the student is told
that the American Revolution took place about 150 years ago, it follows that he
must have some idea of the length of a century. Merely speaking of long periods
of time does not give him an adequate idea of the passage of time. We gain our
conception of the passage of time by experience. The student must be taught the
meaning of the various divisions of time in history. He must be led to think of
the meaning of the various theological terms used, and then by relating them to
his own experiences, he may gain a more accurate idea of the passage of time.
One other thing in this connection that needs to be emphasized is the continuity
of history. By rigid requirements as to memorizing dates, and by dividing history
up into periods, there is grave danger of leading the pupil to think of various
successive events as being sharply separated from each other. As a matter of
fact, the various periods shade off into each other, so that to contemporaries,
there was no break at all. The student must be led to realize this fact by a
study of the continuity of history, and by having parallel events continually
pointed out to him.
We have already hinted at the place of imagination in the study of history.
The student must have the ability to transport himself into the past, divest
himself of all that is modern, and view the world from the angle of the man of
the past. If he does not have this ability, he cannot have a thorough
understanding of the past, and he may not judge and interpret correctly as a
consequence. For instance, in taking up the question of slavery, we are likely
to be intolerant of the attitude of the South in the middle of the nineteenth
century. It is difficult for us ever to imagine humanity ever considering
slavery morally right; yet that condition actually did exist. he student must use
his imagination in judging that situation and forming his conclusions as to the
justice of the South in taking the position that she did.
Perhaps pageantry is the best method of training the historical imagination.
It has the advantage of appealing to the children as well as arousing their
imagination. Attention must be paid to details of costume and social life, etc.
Giving expression to these will help to fix them in mind.
Thus far, we have treated imagination purely as a process of forming images.
Pillsbury claims for it also all processes of construction up to and including
scientific hypothesis. With this meaning, a vast field of social improvement
opens to the student of history. Accustomed as he is to thinking in terms of
reform and social advance, he is able to imagine greater future progress. At the
same time, his study of the past serves as a check upon his too radical tendencies.
Historical imagination may become in this way a valuable constructive force in
society. Certainly, each child has imagination capable of being developed. The
problem is to furnish proper guidance. One of the most constructive of training
this imagination as well as training in transfer of learning, would be to have the
students prepare papers suggesting future reforms, and ways and means of bringing
them about.
One criticism of present history courses lies in the fact that students often
simply memorize the lesson, and unless the teacher is careful there is no mental
training in judgment, and of course little or no transfer will take place. Judd
has pointed out that conscious applications must be made if the best results are
to be accomplished. The task of the teacher is to lead the student to think for
himself. Nevertheless, in some degree, memory must be depended upon in history
as well as in mother subjects. We are told that general principles are retained
longer than particular facts. This fact again emphasizes the value of an
introductory outline, as has been suggested in this paper. Only the general
principles should be memorized; the minor facts should be studied, not with a view
of remembering them, but with the purpose of training the mind. We have already
discussed the most common device of aiding memory in the study of history—
that of presenting a skeleton of the course at the beginning. It is important
that the teacher aid the pupil in such a way as to make memorizing rapid and
permanent.
The question of right and wrong is one which will continually force itself upon
the attention of the student of history. Before one is in a position to pass
judgment upon the moral character of any act, he must thoroughly understand all
the conditions which surround the that act. It is very difficult to obtain such
an understanding; the student is influenced by present day notions and applies
his own standards to past situations. He forgets that in times past standards
were vastly different than they are now. Therefore a thorough study of any past
act is necessary before it can be condemned or commended intelligently.
The individual is likely to be hazy in his memory of past situations. The same
true of the race. Our views concerning past event may be distorted, and before
moral judgment is passed upon any act, a conscientious effort should be made to
secure a correct view of the situation. Children are almost certain to take
sides in the study of an event where two different elements enter in. Some
character is sure to gain their sympathy, and they will sometimes overlook the
faults of their favorite character. Some people never lose this tendency.
Nevertheless, it will be found more conducive to sound moral judgment if such
judgment is suspended until a scientific analysis has been made.
Even though they are perfectly honest. historians may give an entirely wrong
estimate of an event. No two persons see the same things in exactly the same
way. Thus, we would expect to find slight differences between a history of the
Reformation written by a Catholic, and one written by a Protestant.
A great deal has already been said concerning causal judgment. Training in
scientific analysis is a prime essential in historical study. Even when the
student is required to study cause and effect, there is always the danger that
he will not think for himself, but will simply learn the list of causes and
effects given by someone else. This difficulty arises in all courses, and
different students require different treatment. It is the task of the teacher
to find some method of inducing the student to exercise his own mind. The use
of different texts should furnish an incentive for individual thinking. If the
views of the different authors do not exactly agree, the student must of
necessity discriminate before he comes to a conclusion.
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IV. REORGANIZATION
The problem of reorganization is one which has been presenting itself from
time to time in this discussion. It is a problem that will not be solved in a
short period of time. As time goes on and we try new methods and learn more
about psychology, we shall see many places where improvement is possible. Just
now what is needed is a new text which will conform to new methods in presentation
of subject matter. Much of what has been considered essential in the past will
be excluded, and some that is new will be included. Unimportant dates will have
no place, and much non-essential detail will be summed up in a few words.
The following is a sample of the type of paragraph that will not be found
in the new secondary school text. This was taken from a text that belongs to
the older type. "Robert, the Wise, (of Anjou) (1309-43), the successor of
Charles II of Naples, and the champion of the Guelphs, could not extend his power
over Sicily where Frederick II (1296-1337), the son of Peter of Aragon, reigned.
Robert's granddaughter, Joan I, after a career of crime and misfortune, was
strangled in prison by Charles Durazzo, the last male descendant of the House of
Anjou in Lower Italy (1382), who seized on the Government. Joan II, the last
heir of Durazzo (1414-35), first adopted Alphonso V of Aragon, and then Louis III,
of Anjou, and is brother, Rene. Alphonso, who inherited the crown of Sicily
united both kingdoms (1435), after a war with Rene and the Visconti of Milan."
There is little of real value in a paragraph of this kind, and the effect of
much of that sort of thing is to leave the student hopelessly muddled.
More of the movements and affairs of the common people will be taken up, and
less emphasis placed upon kings, wars, and political maneuvers. Lastly, the
new texts should be more brief and the student expected to do some written work
in the way of working out problems of historical importance. Reference to
parallel texts should be made, and problems suggested together with references
to material having a bearing on these problems.
In the modern school there should be some means of guiding the students to make
an intelligent choice of history courses. In the larger schools where many
different courses are offered young people are are led to take courses that have
little or no connection with each other. They take what seems to be the easiest
course, or, being undecided as to vocation, they scatter their energies in a hit
or miss fashion. At the best, only a few history courses can be taken in high
school, and these should be pursued in some logical order. One course which
should be required is American History. To understand American History, the
student must have a background of European History. If American History is the
only course taken, this European background should be included in a brief treatment.
Finally, the methods of presenting the subject must be of a nature calculated
to induce the student to be impartial in his judgments and to have an analytical
attitude. Much depends upon the teacher in this respect. If the material is
presented from a partisan standpoint by the teacher, the pupil cannot be impartial
and just in his opinions and judgments. The teacher must inspire the student to
think for himself.
A conscious effort at applications must be made by the student if this mental
training is to be valuable and useful to him. The whole problem of transfer of
training arises here, but cannot be taken up in detail. A conscious effort on
the part of both teacher and pupil should have some practical results. The
socialized recitation should prove a valuable means of inducing students to make
applications. m The class conducts its own recitations, discovers problems and
discusses solutions. The teacher is there to guide them and see that worthwhile
use is made of the recitation period.
If history teaching is reorganized to meet the new demands it will become a
more valuable course than it is at the present time. It will provide a training
that should be one of the greatest in life. An individual with a mind trained in
scientific analysis would be a far more valuable citizen than one who simply has
a memory for dates, and other like details.
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