WRITING HISTORY: AN INTRODUCTORY GUIDE TO HOW HISTORY IS PRODUCED
Nancy Fitch
What Is History?
Most people believe that history is a "collection of facts about the past." This
is reinforced through the use of textbooks used in teaching history. They are written as
though they are collections of information. In fact, history is NOT a
"collection of facts about the past." History consists of making arguments about
what happened in the past on the basis of what people recorded (in written documents,
cultural artifacts, or oral traditions) at the time. Historians often disagree over what
"the facts" are as well as over how they should be interpreted. The problem is
complicated for major events that produce "winners" and "losers,"
since we are more likely to have sources written by the "winners," designed to
show why they were heroic in their victories.
History In Your Textbook
Many textbooks acknowledge this in lots of places. For example, in one book, the authors
write, "The stories of the conquests of Mexico and Peru are epic tales told by the
victors. Glorified by the chronicles of their companions, the conquistadors, or
conquerors, especially Hernán Cortés (1485-1547), emerged as heroes larger than
life." The authors then continue to describe Cortés’s actions that ultimately
led to the capture of Cuauhtémoc, who ruled the Mexicas after Moctezuma died. From the
authors’ perspective, there is no question that Moctezuma died when he was hit by a
rock thrown by one of his own subjects. When you read accounts of the incident, however,
the situation was so unstable, that it is not clear how Moctezuma died. Note: there is
little analysis in this passage. The authors are simply telling the story based upon
Spanish versions of what happened. There is no interpretation. There is no explanation of
why the Mexicas lost. Many individuals believe that history is about telling
stories, but most historians also want answers to questions like why did the Mexica
lose?
What Are Primary Sources?
To answer these questions, historians turn to primary sources, sources that were written
at the time of the event, in this case written from 1519-1521 in Mexico. These would be
firsthand accounts. Unfortunately, in the case of the conquest of Mexico, there is only
one genuine primary source written from 1519-1521. This primary source consists of the
letters Cortés wrote and sent to Spain. Other sources are conventionally used as primary
sources, although they were written long after the conquest. One example consists of the
account written by Cortés’s companion, Bernal Díaz del Castillo. Other accounts
consist of Mexica and other Nahua stories and traditions about the conquest of Mexico from
their point of view.
Making Arguments In The Textbook
Historians then use these sources to make arguments, which could possibly be refuted by
different interpretations of the same evidence or the discovery of new sources. For
example, the Bentley and Ziegler textbook make several arguments on page 597 about why the
Spanish won:
1. "Steel swords, muskets, cannons, and horses offered Cortes and his men some advantage over the forces they met and help to account for the Spanish conquest of the Aztec empire".
2. "Quite apart from military technology, Cortes's expedition benefited from divisions among the indigenous peoples of Mexico."
3. "With the aid of Dona Marina, the conquistadors forged alliances with peoples who resented domination by the Mexica, the leaders of the Aztec empire...."
Ideally, under each of these "thesis statements," that is, each of these arguments about why the Aztecs were defeated, the authors will give some examples of information that backs up their "thesis." To write effective history and history essays, in fact to write successfully in any area, you should begin your essay with the "thesis" or argument you want to prove with concrete examples that support your thesis. Since the Bentley and Ziegler book doesn't provide any evidence to back up their main arguments, you can easily use the material available on the Internet or in the library to provide evidence to support your claim that any one of the above arguments is better than the others. You could also use the evidence to introduce other possibilities: Mocteuzuma's poor leadership, Cortés' craftiness, or disease.
Become A Critical Reader
To become a critical reader, to empower yourself to "own your own history," you
should think carefully about whether the evidence the authors provide does in fact support
their theses. Since the Bentley and Ziegler book provides only conclusions and not
much evidence to back up their main points, you may want to explore your class notes on
the topic and then examine the primary sources included in the section on the Conquest of
Mexico on the class web site.
Your Assignment For Writing History with Primary
Sources
There are several ways to make this a successful assignment. First, you might take any of
the theses presented in the book and use information from primary sources to disprove
it—the "trash the book" approach. Or, if I have said something in class,
that you are not sure about, find material to disprove it—the "trash the
prof" approach (and, yes, it is really okay). Another approach is to include new
information that the authors ignored. For example, the authors say nothing about
omens. If one analyzes omens in the conquest, will it change the theses or
interpretations presented in the textbook? Or, can one really present a Spanish or
Mexica perspective? Another approach is to make your own thesis, i.e., one of the
biggest reasons for the conquest was that Moctezuma fundamentally misunderstood Cortés.
When Sources Disagree
If you do work with the Mexican materials, you will encounter the harsh reality of
historical research: the sources do not always agree on what happened in a given event. It
is up to you, then, to decide who to believe. Most historians would probably believe
Cortés’s letters were the most likely to be accurate, but is this statement
justified? Cortés was in the heat of battle and while it looked like he might win easy
victory in 1519, he did not complete his mission until 1521. The Cuban Governor,
Diego Velázquez wanted his men to capture Cortés and bring him back to Cuba on charges
of insubordination. Was he painting an unusually rosy picture of his situation so
that the Spanish King would continue to support him? It is up to you to decide. Have the
courage to own your own history! Díaz Del Castillo wrote his account later in his life,
when the Spaniards were being attacked for the harsh policies they implemented in Mexico
after the conquest. He also was upset that Cortés's personal secretary published a
book that made it appear that only Cortés was responsible for the conquest. There
is no question that the idea of the heroic nature of the Spanish actions is clearest in
his account. But does this mean he was wrong about what he said happened and why? It is up
for you to decide. The Mexica accounts are the most complex since they were originally
oral histories told in Nahuatl that were then written down in a newly rendered alphabetic
Nahuatl. They include additional Mexica illustrations of their version of what happened,
for painting was a traditional way the Mexica wrote history. Think about what the pictures
tell us. In fact, a good paper might support a thesis that uses a picture as evidence.
Again, how reliable is this material? It is up to you to decide.
One way to think about the primary sources is to ask the questions: (1) when was the source written, (2) who is the intended audience of the source, (3) what are the similarities between the accounts, (4) what are the differences between the accounts, (5) what pieces of information in the accounts will support your thesis, and (6) what information in the sources are totally irrelevant to the thesis or argument you want to make.