Periodization Reading Questions for Analysis

Write your answers in complete sentences and supply a quote (excerpt) as

evidence to support your answers from the reading below

1. List & Define 5 Vocabulary Terms you didnt know:

1

2. Define Periodization and explain why historians find it to be a

useful tool for analyzing history.

3. Explain why Periodization is a challenging and controversial issue

in World History.

4. Elaborate on the historians role in creating periodizations.

Explain how the historians point of view might affect how they
organize history into manageable chunks.

5. Describe the organizational challenges faced by historians.

Supply at least 2 examples.
6. Historians face ethical challenges when they create historical
periodizations. Describe the ethical challenges faced by World
Historians.

7. Explain how the various calendars used by the many people in

history creates technical problems for the World Historian trying
to create a global periodization. List at least 2 examples from the
reading.

schemes
8. Describe at least 3 periodization that have been used
by past World Historians.

9. Examine the advice David Christian (the author!) gives regarding

the division of history into organized periods of study. Describe
how he describes World History as a whole.

10. Refer to the APWH Course Description and list how time will
divided in our course this year.
APWHCourseDescription
 11. Compose a 3 sentence summary describing the issue of
periodization in World History.

ThisFleetingWorld:
PeriodizationinWorldHistory
byDavidChristian(Berkshire2007)

Beforewegoanyfurtherweneedtoconsidertheissueofperiodization.Periodization
referstothewayhistoriansdividethepastintodistincteras.Howcanwepossiblydivide
thehistoryofhumanityintomanageablechunks?
Likeallstorytelling,historyrequiresastructure,andperiodizationisoneofthe
maindeviceshistoriansusetocreatestructure.Yetthepastisseamless,fluid,and
continuous.Therearefewnaturalbreaks,soanyattempttodividethepastintoneat
chronologicalchunksmustbeartificial.Periodizationalwaysdoesviolencetothe
complexrealityofthepast,andeventhemostconscientiousattemptsatdividingupthe
pastinvolvesomedistortion.Anyschemeofperiodizationmustcompromisebetween
theoftencontradictorydemandsofclarity,coherence,accuracy,andhonesty.
Thechallengeoffindinganappropriateschemeofperiodizationisparticularly
complexinworldhistory,whichtriestoconstructacoherentaccountofthepastofall
humansocieties.Thechallengesareevengreaterforthisessay,whichtriestodescribe
thepastatscalesthatwillseemunfamiliareventosomeworldhistorians.Inevitably,it
willsacrificeimportantdetails,asittriestosketchoutthelargerpatterns.Forexample,
itdescribestheevolutionofagrariancivilizationsasawhole,ratherthanthedistinct
historiesofparticularcivilizations.Ittakesaverydifferentsliceofthepast,onethatis
neitherbetternorworsethanmorefamiliarslices,butsimplydifferent.Andbecauseitis
differentitcanshowsomenewthings,andshowsomefamiliarthingsinanewlight.
Perhapsthemostimportantobjectthatwecanseeattheselargescalesishumanityas
awhole.Atthisscale,and onlyatthisscale,itispossibletogetasenseofthehistorical
trajectoryofhumansasawhole.

ProblemsofPeriodizationinWorldHistory

Theproblemswefacearetheoretical,organizational,ethicalandtechnical.

TheoreticalProblems

Periodizationposestheoreticalproblemsbecauseanychronologicalschemehighlights
someaspectsofthepastandobscuresothers.Whileahistorianofgendermightlook
forerasinwhichtherelativestatusandpowerofwomenandmenchanged(the
grantingofsuffragetowomen,perhaps,ortheemergenceofpatriarchalsocialrelations
inearlyagrariansocieties),ahistorianofwarmightfocus,instead,onchangesin
weaponryandtactics(suchastheuseofgunpowderortheappearanceofthefirst
organizedarmies),whileahistorianofreligionmightconcentrateontheappearanceof
BCE
thefirstuniversalreligionsinthefirstmillennium .Differentquestionshighlight
differentaspectsofthepastandgeneratedifferentperiodizations.Inotherwords,to
chooseaperiodizationistomakesomeratherarbitraryjudgmentsaboutwhatisand
whatisnotmostimportantinhumanhistory.Byfocusingonasmallchunkofthepast
historianscanavoidsomeofthesechallenges,butinworldhistoryperiodization
requiresjudgmentsastothemostimportantchangesacrossallsocietiesonearth.Is
theresufficientconsensusamonghistoriansastowhatthosechangesare?Atpresent,
theanswerisprobablyno.

OrganizationalProblems

Periodizationalsoposessevereorganizationalchallenges.Howcanwefindlabelsthat
dojusticetomanydifferentregionsandsocieties,eachwithitsowndistinctivehistorical
trajectory?Afterall,atanygivenmoment,amilliondifferentthingsarehappening.
Whichofthemshouldthehistorianconcentrateon?Theproblemispeculiarlyacutein
worldhistorybecausewhileneighboringregionsorstatesmayevolveincloselyrelated
ways,societiesseparatedbylargedistancesmayhavelittleincommon.Shouldwe
placetheminthesameperiodjustbecausetheyexistedatthesametime?Orshould
wehaveseparateperiodizationsforeachregion?Inwhichcasewerisklosingany
senseoftheoverallcoherenceofworldhistory.Themodernhistoryprofessionemerged
inEurope,andmanywellestablishedschemesofperiodizationweredesignedtomake
senseofEuropeanhistory.Thisistrue,forexample,ofthetraditionaldivisioninto
ancient,medieval,andmodernperiods.Butsuchlabelsmakelittlesenseoutsideof
Europe,thoughtheyaresowellestablishedthattheysometimesgetusednevertheless.
Similarly,Chinesehistorianshavelonguseddynasticlabelstoprovideaframeworkfor
historicalwriting,butthese,too,arelabelsthatmeanlittleelsewhere.Whatwouldit
meantotalkofTangdynastyAmerica,forexample?Isitpossibletofindlabelsthat
makesenseforAfricaaswellasforthewholeofEurasia,theAmericas,andthe
Pacific?
Here,too,thereislittleconsensusamongstworldhistoriansaboutthebest
solution.

EthicalProblems

Periodizationposesethicalproblemsbecauseitcansoeasilyimplyvaluejudgments.
Thisisparticularlytrueifourperiodizationsassumethatsomeerasweremore
evolvedorprogressivethanothers.SchooltextsonEuropeanhistoryhave
commonlyusedlabelssuchastheDarkAges,theMiddleAges,theRenaissance,
theScientificRevolution,ortheAgeoftheDemocraticRevolution.Whenusedof
entirehistoricalperiods,suchlabelsarebynomeansneutral.Theyweregenerallyused
withtheclearunderstandingthattheDarkAgeswerebackward,thattheMiddleAges
weretransitional,andthatrealprogresstowards
modernitybeganwiththeRenaissance.Suchschemescarryvaluejudgmentsabout
differentregionsaswellasdifferenteras,becausetheyimplicitlycomparethediffering
levelsofprogressofdifferentregions.Untilrecently,itwascommonlyarguedthat,
whileWesternsocietieshadmodernized,manyothersocietieswerestuckinearlier
historicalerasorstagesandneededtocatchup.Isitpossibletoconstructasystemof
periodizationthatavoidsimposingthevaluesofoneperiodorregiononanother?For
thisproblem,too,therearenogenerallyacceptedanswers.

TechnicalProblems

Bytechnicalproblems,Imeanthemanyproblemsthatarisefromthepresenceof
numerousdifferentcalendars.
Whydoesitsoundoddtosaythat:In897Columbuscrossedtheoceanblue?
BecauseIveusedtheMuslimratherthantheChristiancalendar.AncientGreekcity
th
statesmostlydatedeventsbytheyearofeachruler.Notuntilthe4centurydidPlatos
friend,Timaeus,proposeusingacommonsystemofchronology,basedonthedateof
thefirstOlympiad.Accordingtothemodern(Christian)calendar,thiswasintheyear
776BCE.Astheseexamplessuggest,establishingauniversalcalendarhasitselfbeen
acomplex,prolongedanddifficulttask.However,ofalltheproblemsIhavedescribed,
thisistheoneonwhichtherehasemergedareasonablybroadconsensus.Buteven
herethereremainarguments.IsuseoftheChristiancalendarperhapsasubtleformof
culturalimperialism?Canweescapethatchargesimplybyusingtheabbreviations
BC/AD(BeforeChristand AnnoDomini )orBCE/CE
(BeforetheChristianEra,and
ContemporaryEra)?
 Nosystemofperiodizationcansolvealltheseproblemsorsatisfyallthese
differentdemands.Likehistoricalwritingingeneral,schemesofperiodizationreflectthe
biasesandjudgmentsoftheeraandthepeoplethatproducedthem.Theyalsoreflect
thequestionsbeingaskedandthescaleonwhichthosequestionsareposed.This
meansthatnosingleschemewillbeappropriateforthemanydifferentscalesonwhich
historianscananddowriteaboutthepast.

SchemesofPeriodization

Thesimplestapproachtoperiodizationonethatispresentinmanycreation
storiesdividesthepastintotwogreateras.Thesecanbethoughtofastheeraof
creationandtheeraofpresenttime(asinsomeAustralianAboriginalaccounts),orthe
erasbeforeandafterthefall(asintheGenesisstorywithinthe
JudaeoChristianIslamictradition).Dualisticperiodizationsofferapowerfulwayof
contrastingthepresentandthepast,eithertopraiseorcondemnthecontemporaryera.
Tracesofsuchperiodizationssurvive,eventoday,indichotomousschemessuchas
thoseofmodernizationtheory,withitsstarkcontrastingofsocalledmodernand
traditionalsocieties.
However,mostperiodizationschemesdividethepastintoseveralmajoreras,
eachwithsubdivisionsofitsown.Dynastichistoriesweavetheiraccountsofthepast
aroundthereigndatesofmajorkingsandemperors.Suchaccountscanbefoundin
Chinese
dynastichistoriesandinMayanchronicles.Dynastichistoriesoftenimplyacyclicalview
ofthepast,inwhicheachera(likeeachruler)passesthroughperiodsofstrengthand
weakness.Historicalaccountsconceivedwithinamorelinearviewofthepastoften
takeastheirframeworkaseriesofdistincteras,allofwhichmaybeseenaspartofa
BCE
larger,universaltrajectory.Writingintheeighthcentury ,theGreekpoetHesiod
describedfivegreatagesofhistory,beginningwithagoldenage,inwhichhumanswere
contentedandgodlike,andpassingthroughseveralstagesofdeclinetheagesof
silver,bronze,andheroesandfinallytotheeraofhisownday,whichHesiod
characterizedasoneofviolenceandstupidity.
Similarpatternsofriseandfallhavereappearedinmorerecentwritings,suchas
intheworkofOswaldSpengler(18801936)orArnoldToynbee(18891975).Marxian
historiographyofferedacombinationofcyclicalandlinearchronologies,beginningwith
aneraofsimpleperfection(theeraofprimitivecommunism),thatwasfollowedby
stagescharacterizedbyincreasingproductivityandincreasinginequalityand
exploitation.ButtheMarxistschemeculminatedinafuturethatwouldresolvethese
contradictionsbycombininghighproductivitywithareturntotheegalitarianismofthe
firstera.
 Mostmodernperiodizationschemeshavebeenlinear.Suchschemeshavebeen
greatlyinfluencedbytheworkofarchaeologistsandanthropologists,forwhomthe
problemofconstructingaperiodizationcoveringthewholeofhumanhistorywasoften
moreurgentthatitwasforhistorians.Becausearchaeologists,unlikehistorians,deal
mainlywithmaterialartifacts,itwasnaturalforthemtoconstructtheirperiodizations
aroundaspectsofmaterialculture.And,atlargescales,theseseemedtopoint
unequivocallytoahistoryoflinearchange.ThenineteenthcenturyDanish
archaeologistsChristianThomsen(17881865)andJensWorsaae(18211885)
constructedaschemecomprisingthreeagesaStoneAge,aBronzeAge,andanIron
Age.Thatschemestillhassomeinfluenceonthestudyofprehistory.Inthetwentieth
century,G.GordonChilde(18921957)builtontheMarxistinsightthatparticular
technologiesimplydistinctivelifewaysandsocialstructurestoarguethatthemajor
turningpointsinhumanprehistorywheretechnologicalandsocial.Hestressedabove
alltheappearanceofagriculture(theNeolithicRevolution)andtheappearanceof
citiesandstates(theUrbanRevolution).Nineteenthcenturyanthropologistssuchas
LewisHenryMorgan(18181881)andEdwardTylor(18321917)offeredparallel
schemesinwhichdifferenterasweredistinguishedbydifferentsocialstructuresina
progressivemovementfromsavagerytobarbarismtocivilization.
Inthelatetwentiethcentury,historians,anthropologists,andarchaeologists
becameincreasinglysensitivetothedangersofusingschemesthatimplyeasyvalue
judgments.So,whilemostmodernschemesofperiodizationretainasenseof
directionalityinhistory,theyusuallyresisttheassumptionthatdirectionalityimplies
eitherprogressordecline.Ontheotherhand,mostmodernschemesofperiodizationat
thelargestscalesstillrelyprimarilyonacombinationoftechnologicalandsociological
factorstodistinguishbetweendifferenteras.Thisisatraditionwithrootsgoingbackto
theearliestwrittenhistories.TheSumerianepicofGilgamesh,whichdatesfromthe
thirdmillennium BCE,recognizes,inthecontrastbetweentheurbanwarriorhero
GilgameshandhisgreatfriendEnkidu,whocamefromthewildlandsbeyondthecity,
thatdifferenttechnologiesimplydifferentwaysofliving,differentsystemsofethics,and
differenttypesofpoliticalandsocialaction.KarlMarx(18181883)formalizedthis
insightwithinthenotionofamodeofproduction.Thebestjustificationforsuchan
approachtothechallengeofperiodizationisthatfundamentaltechnologiesshapeso
manyotheraspectsofhumanhistory,includinglivingstandards,demography,gender
relations,politicalstructures,andthepaceandnatureofhistoricalchange.

APeriodizationforWorldHistoryasaWhole

Thebestwayofsolvingtheethicalproblemsposedbyanyschemeof
periodizationissimplytotakegreatcarewithlanguageandlabeling,andtoremember
thatallperiodizationsaresomewhatarbitrary.......toimplynojudgmentsastothe
superiorityorinferiorityofdifferenttypesofsocietyordifferenterasofhumanhistory.
Ontheotherhand,...periodizationclearlydoesimplyatrajectoryofsomekind.Onthe
largestscales,therecanbelittledoubtthatthereisadirectionalitytohumanhistory.
Foraging,agrarian,andmodernsocietieshavenotappearedinachronologically
randomjumble,butinaclearsequence.Andthatsequencehasanunderlyinglogicthat
reflectschanginghumanrelationswiththeenvironment.Onlargechronologicalscales,
humantechnologieshavechangedsoastoyieldincreasingamountsofenergy,food,
andotherresources,whichallowedhumanpopulationstoincrease.This,inturn,has
givenrisetolargerandmorecomplexcommunities,whosetechnologiesandsheer
numbershavegiventhemmanyadvantageswhenevertheycameintocontactwith
smallercommunitieswithlessproductivetechnologies.Thereisashapetohuman
history,andthatispreciselywhyaglobalperiodizationschemeofsomekindisso
necessary.

FurtherReading
Bentley,J.H.(1996).Crossculturalinteractionandperiodizationinworldhistory.
AmericanHistoricalReview 101
, ,749756.
Dunn,R.E.(Ed.).(2000). Thenewworldhistory:Ateacherscompanion .Boston&New
York:Bedford.
Green,W.A.(1992).PeriodizationinEuropeanandworldhistory.In JournalofWorld
History 3
,(1),1353.
LiviBacci,M.(1992). Aconcisehistoryofworldpopulation .Oxford,UK:Blackwell.
Long,Thomas(1994).Periodizations:Conceptionsof, BerkshireEncyclopediaof
WorldHistory ,5vols.,GreatBarrington,Mass.:BerkshirePublishingGroup,
2004,3:??
Stearns,P.N.(1987).Periodizationinworldhistoryteaching:Identifyingthebig
changes. TheHistoryTeacher,20 ,561580.