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heregrim's review
5.0
A great overview and introduction to the historian's craft. More importantly, clear enough written for a layman to understand the ins and outs, which was much of his stated goal. Plus, comparisons with both the social sciences and the hard sciences.
tristanpej's review
4.0
The. Book is a series of musings on historians, what they do, and how we fit in the academy. It proposes that history has more in common with certain sciences like palaeontology, geology, astronomy, or evolutionary biology rather than the social sciences. He breaks this down over several chapters. Definite required reading for the budding historian.
caitcoy's review against another edition
3.0
The Landscape of History is an interesting look at how historians do their jobs and what their role is in the larger scheme of things. Gaddis uses a lot of analogies to make his points clear to a more general audience and although this can tend towards being distracting, it does at least make the book easy to read. I would recommend it as an interesting resource for those interested in learning about the profession of history but probably not for the casual reader of history.
briawnah's review
3.0
Interesting, but some of his extended metaphors felt forced after awhile. The question of whether the study of history is more art or science is worth exploring. But this is most definitely a theoretical and philosophical discussion and not one of practice application.
cekwrites's review
3.0
actual rating: 3 stars
perfectly average. the writing was engaging, but there were a WHOLE lot of metaphors.
read for Intro to Historical Research with Dr. Mateusevich [HIST 2180] at Seton Hall University.
perfectly average. the writing was engaging, but there were a WHOLE lot of metaphors.
read for Intro to Historical Research with Dr. Mateusevich [HIST 2180] at Seton Hall University.
sky_reaper's review against another edition
4.0
Well, this book is unexpectedly good, with a metaphorical premise, which is the painting and cover of this book, The Wanderer above a Sea of Fog by Caspar David Friedrich.
It starts with the introduction of the study of history as contradictory and ambiguous, yet it opens the possibility for an uncertain future, in which the historians try to map out using the past and the present. The landscape of history might leave you in this exhilarating sense of significance and insignificance in the spectrum of time and space, but in the end, a worthwhile endeavor, as we see things in its context.
This would be an appropriate introductory guide to those who are majoring in history -- with it tackling part philosophy of history and part historiography. For those who are still studying history, a good refresher course. Reading this made me felt like I'm back in my classes in the past xD
It starts with the introduction of the study of history as contradictory and ambiguous, yet it opens the possibility for an uncertain future, in which the historians try to map out using the past and the present. The landscape of history might leave you in this exhilarating sense of significance and insignificance in the spectrum of time and space, but in the end, a worthwhile endeavor, as we see things in its context.
This would be an appropriate introductory guide to those who are majoring in history -- with it tackling part philosophy of history and part historiography. For those who are still studying history, a good refresher course. Reading this made me felt like I'm back in my classes in the past xD