ABSTRACT
This chapter uses the Renaissance, Enlightenment, and Industrial Revolution to model the characteristics of good history highlighted in Chapter one. It illustrates by example how history makes sense of the past by contextualizing trends, assesses the impact of human ideas and actions, and explains their short-term and long-term significance. While other historical periods could have been included, these examples have universal and recognizable historical markers that build on each other and continue to resonate today. Each section contains a nuanced discussion of case studies that are situated as part of a larger overview of each movement, emphasizing history’s role in identifying patterns that account for continuity and change. The goal is to help the reader gain a sense of history that will be applied in the remaining chapters of the book.
