
WRHS Online Course | Whose History Gets Saved?
Course Description:
Our knowledge of the past, of history, depends on a number of things, including the historians, authors, filmmakers, and museum staff who create a narrative about a person, a time, a place, or an event. But ultimately those narratives rest on the evidence available to them – among them, documents, objects, oral histories, and increasingly digitized data. This three-week online class will focus on those sources and raise a number of questions as to how they survive and come to be used.
It is not a simple story, but one resting on the ability to create a source, the serendipity of its survival, the biases and viewpoints that lead to its preservation, and the manner in which individuals choose to interpret it. This is not a simple story, but one that raises many questions: questions about authority, intent, capacity, politics, funding, and changing viewpoints about the past. This course will be both lecture and discussion – indeed, discussion will be critical to debating and understanding how we come to know history.
Note: Readings for this course are suggested but not required. This course will not involve any written assignments.
Schedule: Wednesdays, March 31; April 7 and 14
Time: 12:00-1:30pm (a brief break will be included)
Instructor: John Grabowski, PhD, Krieger Mueller Chief Historian
Pricing:
Course Registration | $60
WRHS Member Registration | $50
How to Register:
To register, please see below. This course will be held through the Zoom platform. When you register, your confirmation will include a link that will allow you to join the course, as well as all necessary login information and instructions.