Overview

Empathy and History offers a comprehensive and dual account of empathy's intellectual and educational history. Beginning in an influential educational movement that implanted the concept in R.G. Collingwood's re-enactment doctrine, the book goes back to reveal the fundamental role that empathy played in the foundation of the history discipline before tracing its reception and development in twentieth-century hermeneutics and philosophy of history. Attentive to matters of practice, it illuminates the distinct character of the historical context that empathetic understanding seeks to capture and sets out a new approach to empathy as a special variety of historical questioning.

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9781800734388

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Tyson Retz's Empathy and History is an ambitious and well-researched book, which sheds light on the complex origins and development of empathy in the discipline of history, history education and the philosophy of history. The author delivers a compelling exploration of the philosophical context, from which the concept of empathy emerged and argues for a return to metaphysics in philosophical reflection on empathy that focuses on the object of knowledge into which the empathetic inquirer investigates, as much as on the process of knowing itself. * European Journal of Cultural & Political Sociology This book might appeal most to those who want to learn more about philosophical approaches to history, especially those with a metaphysical orientation. The argument that Retz has constructed with this text is complex, thoroughly sourced, fluidly constructed, compelling, and thought provoking for the intellectually curious mind. * Theory & Research in Social Education Retz's invaluable project of disciplinary distillation combines his knack for pedagogy and philosophy as he successfully historicises the concept of empathy and the relevant currents of thought which are attached to it. In this comprehensive account he carefully builds the contextual foundations of empathy's place in historical thinking and pedagogy and marries these seemingly disparate constituents to demonstrate how they have influenced one another. * Rethinking History ...a significant contribution to the literature on understanding the role of empathy in history education. [The author] should be congratulated for providing a comprehensive view of human empathy and education through a historical lens. Overall, this book is recommended as a critical reference for scholars and anyone paying attention to history and education, and it might be a worthy, challenging read for students in this field. * History of Education Empathy and History, Retz's first book, is a significant and timely contribution to the long-standing and divisive debate about the understanding and role of empathy in the human sciences. * History of Education Review It is truly fascinating to accompany Retz as he examines international perceptions, transfers and combinations of empathy-related concepts across the world. * Juliane Brauer, Max Planck Institute for Human Development

Author Information

Tyson Retz is Associate Professor at the University of Stavanger, Norway. He holds a doctorate in history from the University of Melbourne.

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