Historical Consciousness, Part II: Responding to Racism, Ecological Threats, and the Fragmentation of Modern Universities

In a previous article, I examined the nature of historical consciousness. In this article, I apply it to three social issues: racism, ecological crisis, and higher education. Since the methods of historical consciousness are already in use, the aim here is not to introduce a new approach. My purpose...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The American journal of economics and sociology 2021-11, Vol.80 (5), p.1455-1473
Main Author: Cobb, John B.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Citizen participation
Climate change
Consciousness
Discrimination
Higher education
Historical development
Historical events
Modern society
Racism
Rationality
Segmentation
Social issues
Society
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Summary:In a previous article, I examined the nature of historical consciousness. In this article, I apply it to three social issues: racism, ecological crisis, and higher education. Since the methods of historical consciousness are already in use, the aim here is not to introduce a new approach. My purpose is to make readers conscious of what they might normally do and why they are doing it. If a society fails to highlight and make explicit the methods it uses to solve the challenges it faces, the transfer of relevant skills will decline over several generations. Modern society has already reached the stage at which scientism has displaced a balance between timeless scientific rationality and historical consciousness in our approach to social issues. Without historical perspective to provide a narrative structure to the findings of science, society is likely to act in ways that are counterproductive. Unless citizens have a personal sense of participation in the stream of historical events, the knowledge they gain from science is not likely to be useful in guiding the direction of society.
ISSN:0002-9246
1536-7150
DOI:10.1111/ajes.12433