I sometimes forget how magical history is as a subject. For all the frustrations that come with looking endlessly in online archives, finding paywalls, and undigitised sources, I find so much joy in investigating, comparing and linking sources together. I love that eureka moment. I got reminded today of how much fun analysing a magazine, a newspaper or a cartoon can be and kept thinking about a quote from Herbert Butterfield that said that the historian’s role is not that of a judge, but of a detective. Today, I felt like a detective. I found myself having this child-like joy and excitement that I had not felt in a very long time.

I have probably only written two history essays at university that I have been deeply passionate about, and had the time to properly research. I felt so let down by the discipline that I considered changing degrees. I then found the Laidlaw programme, and one of the main reasons why I applied was so I could finally write an essay on a topic I enjoyed, and I can say that I’m finding my research fascinating.

Now that the research period has started, I have been reminded of why I am studying history and why I adore it. I have spent the day looking through archives and annotating so many magazine articles, and I am so excited because I can see my project taking shape. I have gained so much through this program already, more than I thought I would, and I cannot wait to see what else it has in store for me.  

References:

Herbert Butterfield, The Whig Interpretation of History (London, 1931),  chapter 6 ‘Moral Judgements in History’