Physical Time, Historical Time and the Study of the Past in CHA

• In Event: Varities of Time in Comparative Historical Analysis

Abstract

In recent years, comparative historical analysis has become more cognizant of the role that time plays in analyzing the past. It has begun to distinguish between clock-like, reversible and measurable physical time and social, irreversible and qualitative historical time. This chapter explicates this temporal distinction more fully to highlight three elements of CHA. First, CHA explores very different questions and the distinction between physical and historical time helps clarify those questions more fully. Second, CHA does not have a monopoly on studying time, but it is distinct for integrating both notions of time. Physical and historical time help to differentiate CHA from other research traditions. Third, CHA scholars differ significantly in how they combine physical and historical time. The distinction between these two notions of time helps to lump these scholars into three distinct types of CHA.

Author

• Marcus Kreuzer, Villanova University