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On history and other essays

by Michael Oakeshott

In five essays, including three on historiography, one of the greatest minds in English political thought in the twentieth century explores themes central to the human experience: the nature of history, the rule of law, and the quest for power that is intrinsic to the human

Accession 9780865972674 ISBN 9780865972674 Publisher Liberty Fund

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Topics and Themes

1. **Philosophy of History & Historiography**
Oakeshott's central preoccupation is what it means to think historically. He argues the historian's mode of understanding the past is fundamentally distinct from other uses of the past — scientific, practical, or political — and must be pursued without ulterior motive or agenda. The three historiography essays examine the nature of historical events, historical change, identity, and continuity as purely intellectual problems.

Connect to books about: philosophy of history, historiography, historical methodology, hermeneutics, historical consciousness.

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2. **The Practical Past vs. The Historical Past**
Oakeshott draws a sharp distinction between using the past as a guide for present action (the "practical past") and understanding the past on its own terms (the "historical past"). This is one of his most influential contributions, anticipating later debates in temporality theory among historians and philosophers.

Connect to books about: memory studies, collective memory, uses and abuses of history, presentism in historical thought.

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3. **Historical Causality, Contingency & Change**
The essays on historical events explore the many categories through which historians make sense of events — the fortuitous, the causal, the analogous, the contingent — interrogating how change and continuity are constructed rather than simply discovered. Oakeshott's approach is constructivist, raising questions about what historical explanation really achieves.

Connect to books about: causality in history, historical theory, contingency and determinism, narrative and explanation.

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4. **The Rule of Law as an Ideal**
In his essay "The Rule of Law," Oakeshott treats the concept not as a political slogan but as a specific ideal of human relationship — a form of civil association in which persons are related through rules rather than through shared purpose. This is a refined, philosophical treatment distinct from legal positivism or natural law.

Connect to books about: rule of law, legal philosophy, political liberalism, civil association, jurisprudence.

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5. **Power, Politics & the Human Condition**
Underlying several essays is the idea that the quest for power is intrinsic to human existence. Oakeshott approaches this not as a cynical observation but as a philosophical one, examining how political authority, law, and civil life attempt to manage and constrain that drive without extinguishing human freedom.

Connect to books about: political philosophy, theories of power, authority and legitimacy, conservatism, civil society.

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6. **Rationalism, Tradition & the Limits of Reason**
Consistent with Oakeshott's broader body of work, these essays reflect his deep skepticism toward rationalism — the belief that abstract rules or principles can adequately guide political and historical life. He favours tradition, judgment, and practical wisdom over system-building and ideological prescription.

Connect to books about: anti-rationalism, tradition and conservatism, political epistemology, practical reason, Edmund Burke.

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7. **Myth, Symbol & the Tower of Babel**
The essay on the Tower of Babel examines the various tellings and uses of the biblical myth, exploring how a single story can be deployed to illuminate vastly different human circumstances. It raises questions about narrative, symbol, and the relationship between myth and political or moral life.

Connect to books about: political mythology, biblical hermeneutics, symbolism and allegory, narrative theory, moral imagination.

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8. **Constructivism & the Nature of Historical Knowledge**
Oakeshott's approach to history anticipates broader debates in postmodern historiography about whether the past is discovered or constructed. His insistence on the constructive character of historical understanding places him in dialogue with later thinkers like Frank Ankersmit and raises enduring questions about objectivity and interpretation.

Connect to books about: postmodern historiography, epistemology of the social sciences, narrative and truth, objectivity in history, interpretivism.

On history and other essays

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