2. The Sense of History: The Ancient View

In the first video for this series, I considered the inadequacy of our modern approach to history. But where does that leave us? What are the alternatives? Are there are other possible forms of historical research that we might be able to take up to supplement or save our contemporary notion?

In this video, I consider the Ancient Greek approach to history, and how it differs from our own in its focus on human custom and understanding peoples and cultures, rather than facts and epochs.

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00:00 Introduction
00:41 History – etymology and the ancient view
03:01 Modern history vs ancient history
11:27 Eyewitness testimony vs hearsay
13:03 Custom is King (?)
19:24 The ancient view of history
21:45 Breaking free of the modern view
25:41 Closing remarks and The Return of Niche Boy

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