David Černín: Historical Concepts and Conceptual Tension
Among other kinds of concepts used systematically in the natural and social sciences, the historical concepts face unique set of challenges. Their formation and utilization is unlike that of other disciplines. They are rooted in empirical data and follow vague conventions employed in their creation. This paper focuses on the legacy of L. J. Goldstein and on his posthumously published book Conceptual Tension. Goldstein outlines his idea of historical concepts as a kind of concepts different from concepts by intuition and concepts by postulation. Paper aims to reconstruct Goldstein’s original intention by contextualizing historical concepts in his philosophy of historiography.
Among other kinds of concepts used systematically in the natural and social sciences, the historical concepts face unique set of challenges. Their formation and utilization is unlike that of other disciplines. They are rooted in empirical data and follow vague conventions employed in their creation. This paper focuses on the legacy of L. J. Goldstein and on his posthumously published book Conceptual Tension. Goldstein outlines his idea of historical concepts as a kind of concepts different from concepts by intuition and concepts by postulation. Paper aims to reconstruct Goldstein’s original intention by contextualizing historical concepts in his philosophy of historiography.