The Professionalization of History in English Canada

By Donald R. Wright and Donald A. Wright

Book Overview

The study of history in Canada has a history of its own, and its development as an academic discipline is a multifaceted one. The Professionalization of History in English Canada charts the transition of the study of history from a leisurely pastime to that of a full-blown academic career for university-trained scholars - from the mid-nineteenth to the late twentieth century. Donald Wright argues that professionalization was not, in fact, a benign process, nor was it inevitable. It was deliberate. Within two generations, historians saw the creation of a professional association - the Canadian Historical Association - and rise of an academic journal - the Canadian Historical Review . Professionalization was also gendered. In an effort to raise the status of the profession and protect the academic labour market for men, male historians made a concerted effort to exclude women from the academy. History's professionalization is best understood as a transition from one way of organizing intellectual life to another. What came before professionalization was not necessarily inferior, but rather, a different perspective of history. As well, Wright argues convincingly that professionalization inadvertently led to a popular inverse: the amateur historian, whose work is often more widely received and appreciated by the general public.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802039286
• ISBN13: 9780802039286
• Release Date: August 2005
• Publisher: University of Toronto Press
• Length: 280 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.3" x 9.1"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher