XIV. Make a written translation of the text. Put all types of questions covering the plot of the text. Retell it.

Counterfactual history, also sometimes referred to as virtual history, is a recent form of history which attempts to answer "what if" questions known as counterfactuals. It seeks to explore history and historical incidents by means of extrapolating a timeline in which certain key historical events did not happen nor had an outcome which was different from that which did in fact occur.

The purpose of this exercise is to ascertain the relative importance of the event, incident or person the counterfactual hypothesis is negating. For instance, to the counterfactual claim "What would have happened had Hitler died in the July, 1944, assassination attempt?", all sorts of possibilities become readily apparent, starting with the reasonable assumption that the Nazi generals would have in all likelihood sued for peace, bringing an early end to World War II. Thus, the counterfactual brings into sharp relief the importance of Hitler as an individual and how his personal fate shaped the course of the War and, ultimately, of world history.

Counterfactual history is in many ways a reaction to the extreme de-personalization and determinism of much of current historical studies, with their emphasis on social history as opposed to event- and personality-driven history.

Few attempts to bring counterfactual history into the world of academia were made until the 1996 publication of Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals, a collection of essays exploring different scenarios by a number of historians, edited by the historian N.Ferguson. Ferguson has become a significant advocate of counterfactual history, using counterfactual scenarios to illustrate his objections to deterministic theories of history such as Marxism, and to put forward a case for the importance of contingency in history, theorizing that a few key changes could result in a significantly different modern world.

It should be noted that counterfactual history is most emphatically not historical revisionism (negationism). Nor should it be confused with the genre of alternate history fiction. In general, the main distinguishing feature of counterfactual history is that it is interested precisely in the incident or event that is being negated by the counterfactual, and is seeking to evaluate its relative historical importance by means of the counterfactual. Thus, the counterfactual historian attempts to provide reasoned arguments for each change, and the changes are usually outlined only in broad terms, since the results of the counterfactual are not the point of the exercise but merely the byproduct. An alternative history writer, on the other hand, is interested precisely in the hypothetical scenarios that flow from the negated incident or event.

Unit XXXIII

I. Look through the words and expressions and learn them:

Ø insights of psychotherapy – розуміння психотерапії;

Ø incest, infanticide and child sacrifice – кровозмішення, дітовбивство та дитяче жертвоприношення;

Ø abuse and neglect – погане поводження та нехтування;

Ø self-destructive re-enactment – само руйнівне/знищувальне відтворення;

Ø unconscious flashbacks to early fears – підсвідомі спогади дитячих страхів;

Ø to credit with – пов’язувати з;

Ø to set apart – стояти осторонь/відділятися;

Ø to cast doubt on – піддавати сумніву;

Ø the viability of the application of post-mortem psychoanalysis –життєздатність застосування посмертного психоаналізу;

Ø apologists for incest, infanticide, cannibalism and child sacrifice –поборники кровозмішення, дітовбивства, канібалізму та дитячого жертвоприношення;

Ø dissociation and magical thinking – розщеплення особистості та магічне мислення

II. Read and translate the text:

PSYCHOHISTORY

Psychohistory is the study of the psychological motivations of historical events. It combines the insights of psychotherapy with the research methodology of the social sciences to understand the emotional origin of the social and political behaviour of groups and nations, past and present. This field of study is considered to have significant differences from the mainstream fields of history and psychology.

Psychohistory derives many of its insights from areas that are ignored by conventional historians as shaping factors of human history, in particular, the effects of childbirth, parenting practice, and child abuse. The historical impact of incest, infanticide and child sacrifice are considered. Psychohistory holds that human societies can change between infanticidal and non-infanticidal practices and has coined the term "early infanticidal childrearing" to describe abuse and neglect observed by many anthropologists. Lloyd deMause, the pioneer of psychohistory, has described a system of psychogenic modes which describe the range of styles of parenting he has observed historically and across cultures.

Many political scientists and historians teach that social behaviour is usually for rational reasons rather than irrational ones, and that international violence is often instigated for economic gain. Psychohistorians, on the other hand, suggest that social behaviour may be a self-destructive re-enactment of earlier abuse and neglect; that unconscious flashbacks to early fears and destructive parenting could dominate individual and social behaviour.

Psychohistory has been credited with helping to revitalize the historical biography. Notable examples of psychobiographies are those of Lewis Namier, who wrote about the British House of Commons and Fawn Brodie, who wrote about Thomas Jefferson.

There are three inter-related areas of psychohistorical study:

· The History of Childhood – looks at such questions as:

How have children been raised throughout history?

How has the family been constituted?

How and why have practices changed over time?

How have the place and value of children changed in society over time?

How and why have our views of child abuse and neglect changed?

· Psychobiography - seeks to understand individual historical people and their motivations in history.

· Group Psychohistory - seeks to understand the motivations of large groups, including nations, in history and current affairs. In doing so, psychohistory advances the use of group-fantasy analysis of political speeches, political cartoons and media headlines since the fantasy words therein offer clues to unconscious thinking and behaviours.

Sigmund Freud's well known work Civilization and Its Discontents (1929) included an analysis of history based on his theory of psychoanalysis.

The psychologist and philosopher Erich Fromm wrote about the psychological motivation behind political ideology, starting with The Fear of Freedom in 1941.

Psychohistory’s first academic use appeared in Erik Erikson's book Young Man Luther (1958), where the author called for a discipline of "psycho-history" to examine the impact of human character on history.

Lloyd deMause developed a formal psychohistorical approach and continues to be an influential theorist in this field.

DeMause and others have argued that psychohistory is a separate field of scholarly inquiry with its own particular methods, objectives and theories, which set it apart from conventional historical analysis and anthropology. Some historians, social scientists and anthropologists have, however, argued that their disciplines already describe psychological motivation and that Psychohistory is not, therefore, a separate subject. Others have dismissed deMause's theories and motives arguing that the emphasis given by Psychohistory to speculation on the psychological motivations of people in history make it an undisciplined field of study. Doubt has also been cast on the viability of the application of post-mortem psychoanalysis by Freud's followers.

Psychohistorians maintain that the difference is one of emphasis and that, in conventional study, narrative and description are central, while psychological motivation is hardly touched on. For deMause, child abuse takes the centre stage.

Psychohistorians accuse most anthropologists and ethnologists of being apologists for incest, infanticide, cannibalism and child sacrifice. They maintain that what constitutes child abuse is a matter of objective fact, and that some of the practices which mainstream anthropologists apologize for may result in psychosis, dissociation and magical thinking: particularly for the surviving children who had a sacrificed brother or sister by their parents. Psychohistorians also believe that the extreme cultural relativism proposed by many anthropologists is contrary to the letter and spirit of human rights.

III. Study the given below lexical units (provide the Ukrainian variants):

· to understand the emotional origin of the social and political behaviour;

· to derive many of its insights from areas;

· "early infanticidal childrearing";

· to understand the motivations of large groups;

· changing place and value of children in society over time;

· to advance the use of group-fantasy analysis;

· to develop a formal psychohistorical approach;

· particular methods, objectives and theories;

· for the surviving children who had a sacrificed brother or sister;

· to speculation on the psychological motivations of people in history

IV. Find English equivalents for the following:

§ провокувати заради економічної вигоди/користі;

§ досліджувати вплив людського характеру на історію;

§ описувати систему психогенетичного стану;

§ розвивати правильний психоісторичний підхід;

§ окрема галузь/сфера наукового дослідження;

§ відділятися від традиційного історичного аналізу

§ недисциплінарна сфера дослідження;

§ бути принесеним в жертву батьками;

§ намагатися зрозуміти окремі історичні постаті та їх мотивацію в історії

V. Give synonyms to the underlined words:

¨ perceived to be ignored by;

¨ conventional historians;

¨ the effects of childbirth;

¨ parenting practice;

¨ unconscious flashbacks;

¨ helping to revitalize;

¨ to offer clues to;

¨ political cartoons;

¨ media headlines;

¨ an undisciplinedfield of study;

¨ the viability of the application

VI. Explain in your own way the following:

- mainstream fields of history and psychology;

- to set apart from conventional historical analysis;

- psychohistory is a separate field of scholarly inquiry;

- political cartoons;

- media headlines;

- the impact of human character on history;

- an undisciplined field of study;

- the letter and spirit of human rights