This course is founded upon a fundamental yet complex question; what is history? The course investigates this question by examining the various kinds of history; witnessing the myriad ways of communicating historical stories and arguments ? ranging from the scholarly monograph to the town square statue to the museum exhibit; and learning how historians of all types actually make history through close, rational analysis of historical sources. In the process students will learn that history is an ever-evolving craft, central to the life of every society.