Historical Criticisms

OBJECTIVES

1.Provide ideas that guide the discipline

of history
2. Develop critical and analytical skills
with exposure to primary sources
3. Evaluate primary sources for their
credibility, authenticity and provenance
4. Opportunities to improve critical
thinking
 Historical Criticism

• It is also known as the historical-critical

method, Historical criticism is a branch of
criticism that investigates the origin of text or
source in order to understand the word
behind the text.
 Goals of History Criticism

 Primary goal
 Secondary goal
 Goals of History Criticism

• The primary goal of historical criticism is to

discover the text primitive or original historical
context and its literal sense.
• The secondary goal seeks establish a
reconstruction of historical situation of the
author and recipients of the text.
 Two types
of Historical Criticism
external criticism (investigates the documents
form) and internal criticism (investigates the
content of the documents).
 Additional Goal of Historical Criticism

• The goal of historical criticism, traditionally,

has been to try to understand the text’s
meaning in its original context and to answer
questions about the text.
• Historical criticism has also often sought
answers to the ever-elusive question of what
is called “authorial intent”:
 External Criticism
• This type of criticism looks for the obvious sign
of forgery or misrepresentation. This type of
criticism tests the authenticity of the sources.
• The historian also analyzes the original
manuscript; its integrity, localization and the
date it was written.
• it is the first test the historian employ to
ascertain sources validity.
 Test of authenticity

• The first step to test a source is to determine

the date of document to see whether it is
anachronistic.
 Test of authenticity

Anachronism means out of time or order,

something that could not have been there at
that particular time.
 Test of authenticity

• The second step is to determine the author’s

handwriting, signature or seal.
 Test of authenticity

• The third test in determining the authenticity

of the source is by looking for the
anachronistic style.
 Test of authenticity
Early Tagalog System (taken from Doctrina Christiana,)
Ama namin, nasa Lan͠gitca,
Ypasamba Mo ang N͠galanmo.
Mouisaamin ang pagcaharimo.
Ypasonor mo ang loob mo
Dito sa lupa para sa Lan͠git.

Modern Filipino orthography

Ama namin, sumasalangit Ka,
Sambahín ang Ngalan Mo.
Mapasaamin ang kaharián Mo.
Sundín ang loób Mo
Dito sa lupà, para nang sa langit.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filipino_orthography
 Test of authenticity

• The fourth test is the anachronistic reference

to events.
 Test of authenticity

• The fifth test of authenticity is the provenance

or custody of the document.
 Test of authenticity

• The other two test of authenticity is the

semantics and hermeneutics.
• Semantics is the linguistic study of meaning.
• Hermeneutics is more than interpretation or
method used when immediate
comprehension fails.
 Internal Criticism

• This type of criticism looks for deeper or more

intense study of sources.
• Usually historians first apply external criticism
before undergoing the test of credibility because
of internal criticisms implicit character.
• Internal criticism has to do with what the
document says. It investigates the content or
substance of a document and the author’s point
of view.
 Test of Credibility

• The first step is the identification of the author.

• The second step in testing the credibility of the
eyewitness is to determine the approximate date.
• The third step in testing the credibility of the
source is its ability to tell the truth. Historians
examine how near an eyewitness is to the event.
• The fourth step is the willingness to tell the truth.
• The last step is to look for corroboration.
Thank you<33