One of our major objectives of this course is to understand “multiple perspectives in culture and heritage” in the American experience. By visualizing the Venn diagram, you will develop an understanding for various cultural views of the past as well as for major historical debates, such as the role of gender and race or the rise of the West and its impact on the world.

Historians approach the past by asking questions. Unfortunately not all their inquiries can be adequately answered because in many ways the past is gone. Records have been destroyed. So history is a process of reconstruction. As historians write about the past, they create a historical tradition that reveals much about themselves and our national consciousness. The dilemma of capturing the past, if this is ever possible, belongs to the realm of historiography, the methodology of historical study.

Not all your questions will be answered in this survey course. You will find partial explanations in your textbook, as well as in professional academic publications, such as Black Conquistadors- Armed Africans in Early Spanish America. Many answers, however, are still hidden away in the sources from which historians construct the past. Interpreting those sources is your challenge.

As you read Primary Sources (first hand accounts), you will likely interpret them from your personal point of view. Current events may shape your opinions and thus your interpretation of the past. We can see this clearly in the tragedy of Sept 11th. At some level historians are examining the past through the prism of this event. Think about your questions. Did they really reflect your interest, or are they a deeper reflection of American social values? For a further discussion of primary sources, refer to primary sources on Virginia and milestones.

Another perspective is the use of theory to explain the complex nature of human interaction. As you read secondary sources, such as your textbook, think about the interpretive model the authors employ. Listing events in chronological order is easy, understanding motives challenging. Using theoretical models can help us understand complex social problems, but at the same time it can equally shroud seminal issues.

Look carefully at the major questions posed by each chapter of Enduring Vision. These questions tell you a lot about the authors' intentions. Pay attention to adjectives and descriptive words in the text. They too reveal aspects of the intellectual character of the authors. Remember that reading your textbook is also an exercise in studying a particular view of today's society. See the Information Cycle to learn more about primary, secondary and tertiary sources.