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History a domain of profound knowledge: Rajan Gurukkal

KOCHI: History, according to academician Rajan Gurukkal, is not commonsensical knowledge about the past.

“It is analytically accessed theoretical explanation of the past in terms of transformations,” he said while addressing a group of teachers and students at Maharaja’s College here on Thursday. The programme was part of the golden jubilee celebrations of the postgraduate course in History offered by the Department of History.

Elaborating on the scope of the subject (History), Dr. Gurukkal said that the discipline is considered a domain of profound knowledge, a field of centrality. “The knowledge about the past used to be delightful descriptions of the historical events. The old professors in history, quite wiser and more learned that us, used to treat the subject as a part of literature. Incidentally, the subject matter became secondary to the flowing style of language,” he said.

Referring to the recent trends in history, Dr. Gurukkal said that today history is noted for its intellectual depth. “It is a heavily interpretative field of knowledge about the past ideas, institutions, structures, systems and processes. History is no longer a story-telling exercise.”

He said that the subject is not pursued with mere antiquarian interest these days. “Professional historians pursue history under the compulsions of the contemporary social and political issues. By studying the past, the people should get a critical consciousness and insights into the present day problems,” he said.

Maharaja’s College principal Shiela Paul, N. Vimalakumari, Head of the Department of History, and N. Asoka Kumar, faculty member, spoke on the occasion. An interaction with former teachers and postgraduate students was held in the afternoon.

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