Today:
You know the drill: this is the thread for all your history-related outpourings that are not necessarily questions. Minor questions that you feel don't need or merit their own threads are welcome too. Discovered a great new book, documentary, article or blog? Has your Ph.D. application been successful? Have you made an archaeological discovery in your back yard? Did you find an anecdote about the Doge of Venice telling a joke to Michel Foucault? Tell us all about it.
As usual, moderation in this thread will be relatively non-existent -- jokes, anecdotes and light-hearted banter are welcome.
Hey everyone! I'm back from conducting two months of fieldwork in Belize. While I cannot discuss the specifics of this season's fieldwork, I can talk a little bit about the area if anyone is interested. I was working in the Xunantunich/Buenavista/Arenal region of Belize near the Guatemala border. Cahal Pech was located nearby in the large tourist town of San Ignacio de Cayo for those of you who have visited Belize. Please keep in mind that I am not a Mayanist and there are gaps in my knowledge.
The mods over at /r/AcademicBiblical & /r/AskBibleScholars have decided to remove all posts/inquires regarding Jesus mythicism and, thereby, redirect the OP to a future FAQ entry on the subject. Currently, the FAQ entry is being crowdsourced at /r/AcademicBiblical at the following link:
We would like to extend this opportunity to the /r/AskHistorians community.
I can't believe i just discovered this sub, this sub is gonna keep me awake for years! (or at least i have no memory of visiting this sub)
Hello All,
Should there be an update and reconstruction of the Latin America section especially for the booklist? I feel some of the books in that list are outdated or have newer and updated editions.
For Latin America, it would be more accessible if we broke it up into subcategories. It would be nice if Mexico gets its own section given the extensive time periods in that country's history (i.e. ancient, colonial, independence and reforms, revolution, modern, etc)
Thanks!
Despite my Austen greenhorn status I am loving Hilary Davidson's piece "Reconstructing Jane Austen's Silk Pelisse, 1812-1814" written for the Costume Society of Great Britain back in 2015. Fashion history, material culture, biographical research, public history, textile preservation, forensic skeletal research, and finally the construction of replica garments -- what the author describes as "research through remaking". It's a blast.
Are most of the names and places cited in your stories the product of historical research or a fertile imagination?
I use real places in my stories, and, now and then, actual people. I've used, fictitiously, Charles II, John Smith, George Washington, Robert E. Lee, and Ulysses S. Grant, among others, always trying to recognize the realities. I've based characters on real persons I've known, and sometimes, with permission, used real names. Imagination goes into this, of course. But, if you're trying to make a story real, where is the boundary between fact and fiction? Nowadays, a great deal of stuff that is offred as fact is fiction, anyway.
Historical research and realism in pulp fiction is probably understated; fewer people look for accuracy in stories of zombies, witches, and vampires, much less more exotic fare like Martians, Cthulhu, and zeuvembies, but many pulp writers took at least modest pains to research their subjects, both historical and esoteric, to improve verisimilitude - and this was also true to a large extant in pulps that focused on historical fiction, like Adventure and Oriental Stories.
If I may toot my own horn just got back from a screening of a documentary that I was a researcher on. Many hours of pouring over tens of thousands of documents, newspapers, newsreel footage a couple auto-biographies, several trips to archives overseas, and numerous interviews. All for fifty minutes of screen time I'd say it was worth it!
Hey everyone. I'm a fairly new history major and I'm still considering what sort of history I'd like to make my area of expertise. Is it unusual for a historian to have multiple areas of study that aren't directly related to one another? I find the first half of the 17th century in Europe to be fascinating, but I also have a fondness for the Victorian and Edwardian periods, and I'm conflicted on which one I'd like to focus on more, going forward. A general national focus (e.g. British history) wouldn't exactly fit my interests, not least because I find the 18th century as a whole dull in comparison. (I think it's the wigs :P)
Hi! I looked through the book recommendations list and just started Gaddis’ The Cold War. However, I think he’s more on the orthodox, American-centric side — what would be a good overview with a different perspective/interpretation? Thanks!
Why didn't people just start eating birds in history during famines and recessions?
I mean not like every person is trying to hunt birds, but as a collective action.
Like we got around to doing organized fishing.
Birds may not be nourishing, but it could keep you from dying.
Governments trying to build dams and canals sound more difficult than trying to catch birds.
Or am I getting something wrong about how difficult that is?