The Craft of International History: A Guide to Method

Marc Trachtenberg; Marc Trachtenberg

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Princeton University Press

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The Craft of International History

A Guide to Method

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Language: English

Published/Copyright: 2009

About this book

This is a practical guide to the historical study of international politics. The focus is on the nuts and bolts of historical research--that is, on how to use original sources, analyze and interpret historical works, and actually write a work of history. Two appendixes provide sources sure to be indispensable for anyone doing research in this area.

The book does not simply lay down precepts. It presents examples drawn from the author's more than forty years' experience as a working historian. One important chapter, dealing with America's road to war in 1941, shows in unprecedented detail how an interpretation of a major historical issue can be developed. The aim throughout is to throw open the doors of the workshop so that young scholars, both historians and political scientists, can see the sort of thought processes the historian goes through before he or she puts anything on paper. Filled with valuable examples, this is a book anyone serious about conducting historical research will want to have on the bookshelf.

Author / Editor information

Marc Trachtenberg is Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles. He is the author of a number of works on twentieth-century international politics, most notably A Constructed Peace: The Making of the European Settlement, 1945 to 1963.

Reviews

"A useful and invaluable handbook of international studies. . . . [Guides] the readers into the basic techniques of historical research: how to design a scholarly project, build an essential bibliography, read historical texts, analyze primary sources and how to write the research conclusions. . . . Especially recommended."---María Inés Tato, International Relations --- "One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2006"

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Publicly Available

Frontmatter
i

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CONTENTS
v

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Preface
vii

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Chapter One. The Theory of Historical Inquiry
1

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Chapter Two. Diplomatic History and International Relations Theory
30

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Chapter Three. The Critical Analysis of Historical Texts
51

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Chapter Four. Developing An Interpretation Through Textual Analysis: The 1941 Case
79

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Chapter Five. Working With Documents
140

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Chapter Six. Starting a Project
169

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Chapter Seven. Writing It Up
183

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Appendix I. Identifying the Scholarly Literature
199

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Appendix II. Working with Primary Sources
217

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Bibliography
257

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Index
263

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Publishing information

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

eBook published on:

February 9, 2009

eBook ISBN:

9781400827237

Edition:

Course Book

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781400827237

eBook ISBN: 9781400827237

Keywords for this book

Bibliography; Literature; International relations; Website; Writing; Theory; Explanation; Cambridge University Press; Thought; Archive; Microform; Philosophy of science; Publication; World War II; Adolf Hitler; Political science; Imre Lakatos; Theory of International Politics; Containment; Lecture; Foreign policy; JSTOR; United States Department of State; Diplomatic history; Ernest May (historian); Primary source; Archival research; Thomas Kuhn; Understanding; A Book Of; Empirical evidence; Periodical literature; Scientist; Declaration of war; Book review; Robert Jervis; National security; Philosopher; Handbook; Papers (software); Great power; Military history; Book; Thomas Schelling; Soviet Union; Security studies; Social Sciences Citation Index; Philosophy of history; Scientific method; The Origins of the Second World War; John F. Kennedy; Inference; Hypothesis; Review article; Karl Popper; Theory and History; Attack on Pearl Harbor; Social science; Security dilemma; Library classification; Pearl Harbor; Ideology; Kenneth Waltz; Historical method; Nuclear weapon; Routledge; Positivism; Archivist; Japan–United States relations; World war

Audience(s) for this book

For an expert adult audience, including professional development and academic research

Princeton University Press

The Craft of International History

Overview

About this book

Author / Editor information

Reviews

Topics

Table of contents

Frontmatter

CONTENTS

Preface

Chapter One. The Theory of Historical Inquiry

Chapter Two. Diplomatic History and International Relations Theory

Chapter Three. The Critical Analysis of Historical Texts

Chapter Four. Developing An Interpretation Through Textual Analysis: The 1941 Case

Chapter Five. Working With Documents

Chapter Six. Starting a Project

Chapter Seven. Writing It Up

Appendix I. Identifying the Scholarly Literature

Appendix II. Working with Primary Sources

Bibliography

Index

Bibliographic data