This week, ending in August 27 2015:
Today's thread is for open discussion of:
History in the academy
Historiographical disputes, debates and rivalries
Implications of historical theory both abstractly and in application
Philosophy of history
And so on
Regular participants in the Thursday threads should just keep doing what they've been doing; newcomers should take notice that this thread is meant for open discussion only of matters like those above, not just anything you like -- we'll have a thread on Friday for that, as usual.
Fall term is starting, which means LONG staff meetings to discuss assessments.
Send help.
Reading lists for comps. It really shouldn't be so hard to put together a field reading list. But I was surprised when I built my lists (going on 2 years now) how hard it was to find example lists online. Do people keep their lists secret on purpose? Is it considered some sort of rite of passage? Seems like bibliographies would be easier to find and, if anything, that some type of consensus would begin to form due to the web.
Historiographical disputes, debates and rivalries
What are some famous historical disputes? Also some good debates.
How important is marx's theory of Historical materialism in history today? What are the major criticisms of it? Do non-marxists use it?
I'm not sure if this is entirely the right place to ask this, but I don't think it deserves a question all to itself. I get to choose the title of my 4000 word coursework essay for my history A-level and whilst I know I want to write it on WW2 (and probably the Eastern Front), are there any particular areas of debate that would be worth exploring?