Jean-Paul Sartre and Our Responsibility for Teaching History :: Philosophy Education Research Papers

denim-Paul Sartre and Our Responsibility for Teaching HistoryABSTRACT diachronic explore was one of Jean-Paul Sartres major concerns. Sartres biographical studies and thought indicate that muniment is not only a field in which you gather facts, events, and processes, that it is a worthy challenge which includes a grave personal responsibleness my responsibility to the dead lives that preceded me. Sartres writings suggest that accepting this responsibility give notice be a source of wisdom. Few historians, however, view history as transcending the orderly presenting and elucidating of facts, events, and processes. I contend that Sartres writings suggest a personally enhancing commitment. A lucid and honest response to the challenges and demands of history and the dead lives that preceded my deliver existence is an engagement that requires courage, wisdom, and thought. The consequences of this commitment for teaching history is discussed. Historical research was one of Jean-Pau l Sartres major concerns. Roquentin, the central character of his first novel, Nausea, has chosen the job of historian. (1) He comes to Bouville in order to write a history of Monsieur de Rollebon, who was officious at the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth century. Important documents pertaining to Rollebons behavior are in the Bouville library. As the novel develops Roquentin decidesfor good reasonsto abandon his historical research, a decision to which we return. Unlike Roquentin, Sartre never abandoned the realm of historical research. Quite often he discussed history in his philosophical writings. His plays repeatedly deal with the need to relate authentically, truthfully to history. In addition, Sartre wrote three biographiesof Charles Baudelaire, Jean Genet, and The Family Idiot, a close to three thousand page study of the deportment of Gustave Flaubertin which he suggested and presented an approach to studying the life of a unique(predicate) person within his or her situation. Sartre also wrote abbreviated studies of contemporary history, such(prenominal) as his short book on Castros Cuba. (2) Consequently, the corpus of Sartres writings abounds with edifying insights and ideas on how to study and write history. Very few, if any, of Sartres insights have been transferred to the realm of historical scholarship or of teaching history. Our survey of relevant literature revealed virtually no attempts to learn from Sartre in these fields. Someone may argue that the variety of scholarshipwhereby many, if not most, historians rarely read books by philosophersmay be an important reason for the ignoring of Sartres insights in the fields of history and teaching history.