Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Crazy Horse: The Strange Man Of The Oglalas By Marl Sandoz Historiography, A Philosophy For Reconstruction, Mary Dixon

Great Plains Quarterly

HISTORIOGRAPHY: MYTH FOR ENLIGHTENMENT

Noted historians Will and Ariel Durant have outlined the importance of knowing, understanding, and celebrating history as a valuable heritage. They call historiography "an industry, an art, and a philosophy-an industry by ferreting out the facts, an art by establishing a meaningful order in the chaos of the materials, a philosophy by seeking perspective and enlightenment." A true evaluation of the history of the American West is an important consideration for Americans, because as the Durants claim, there is much to gain from a proper understanding of it. In order to gain perspective and enlightenment from …