Rather than attack Wikipedia as a source, is their definition incorrect or
not.
Presentism is such a fallacy. HOW can we impose our values and mores on
those in the past that did not have our level of culture, expertise and
learning. They obviously practiced all of those nasty habits, because it
made them feel good. We have evolved to our present state because so many
made so many mistakes that some things were learned and eliminated as things
not to do. While we are ripping TJ and crowd for their lack of virtue, why
not condemn those on this planet who are still practicing those things,
slavery - piracy and trading in human lives, that we have criticized our
ancestors for in this forum. It is because of the mistakes they made and
changes in our culture, progress, which have elevated us to our present
levels, hopefully.
JP Adams
Texas
-----Original Message-----
From: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of [log in to unmask]
Sent: Wednesday, October 22, 2008 11:24 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Presentism - fact or fiction
I'd like to echo this. Wikipedia can be a useful source--but since the
authors are mostly anonymous, no one takes any public responsibility for
what they write. There is a direct connection between accountability and
quality (something that is true for the administration of government and
business as well).
All best,
Kevin
---- Original message ----
>Date: Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:08:43 -0400
>From: "Stephan A. Schwartz" <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Re: Presentism - fact or fiction
>To: [log in to unmask]
>
>As a general rule I would suggest that scholars not use Wikipedia as
>a reference. It can be appallingly inaccurate, particularly on any
>subject around which there is controversy.
>
>-- Stephan
>
>
>
>Stephan A. Schwartz
>Email:
>[log in to unmask]
>Personal Website:
>www.stephanaschwartz.com
>Schwartzreport:
>www.schwartzreport.net
>Explore - Schwartzreport Column:
> www.explorejournal.com
>
>
>
>
>
>On 22 Oct 2008, at 09:55, John Philip Adams wrote:
>
>> Presentism (literary and historical analysis) From Wikipedia, the free
>> encyclopedia
>> Jump to: navigation, search
>>
>> Presentism is a mode of historical analysis in which present-day
>> ideas and
>> perspectives are anachronistically introduced into depictions or
>> interpretations of the past. Some modern historians seek to avoid
>> presentism
>> in their work because they believe it creates a distorted
>> understanding of
>> their subject matter.
>>
>> The Oxford English Dictionary gives the first citation for
>> presentism in its
>> historiographical sense from 1916, and the word may have been in
>> use in this
>> meaning as early as the 1870s. Historian David Hackett Fischer
>> identifies
>> presentism as a logical fallacy also known as the "fallacy of nunc pro
>> tunc". He has written that the "classic example" of presentism was the
>> so-called "Whig history", in which certain eighteenth- and
>> nineteenth-century British historians wrote history in a way that
>> used the
>> past to validate their own political beliefs. This interpretation was
>> presentist because it did not depict the past in objective historical
>> context, but instead viewed history only through the lens of
>> contemporary
>> Whig beliefs. In this kind of approach, which emphasizes the
>> relevance of
>> history to the present, things which do not seem relevant receive
>> little
>> attention, resulting in a misleading portrayal of the past. "Whig
>> history"
>> or "whiggishness" are often used as synonyms for presentism,
>> particularly
>> when the historical depiction in question is teleological or
>> triumphalist.
>>
>> Have any of you teachers thought about going back to colleges and
>> universities and getting some more degrees in education?
>> John Philip Adams
>> Texas
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
>> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Anne Pemberton
>> Sent: Wednesday, October 22, 2008 7:41 AM
>> To: [log in to unmask]
>> Subject: Re: History as TRUTH
>>
>> James,
>>
>> Not sure if it is mentioned in 1491, but in the earlier book, "The
>> Invasion
>> of America" by Francis Jennings, it is mentioned that archeologists
>> have
>> found evidence that the Chinese visited the west coast of South and
>> perhaps
>> Central America. There are suggestions that they ventured as far
>> north as
>> San Francisco.
>>
>> Columbus was a map-maker who wanted to get very rich by discovering
>> the
>> shortest route to the Spice Islands for whatever country would
>> finance his
>> adventure.
>>
>> Bear in mind that those who were going west to fish the various
>> banks of
>> North America were taking on the same perils in just as small, or
>> smaller,
>> or craft than Columbus did. It's a matter of whether one is a
>> seafaring man
>> or not.
>>
>> If Columbus was such a "worthy man of his times" why was his
>> governorship of
>> an island withdrawn for unsavory practices with the Natives?
>>
>> It not a matter of presentism, its a matter of debunking childhood
>> myths.
>>
>> Anne
>>
>> Anne Pemberton
>> [log in to unmask]
>> http://www.erols.com/apembert
>> http://www.educationalsynthesis.org
>>
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>
>______________________________________
>To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at
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Kevin R. Hardwick, Ph.D.
Department of History
James Madison University
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