Specialized Humanities Vocab Flashcards
Rankean Empiricism
A historical approach that emphasizes reliance on primary sources and knowing exactly as things had happened
Milieu
Social Enviornment
To Jettison
To Throw/Drop
Annales School
A historiographical movement focusing on long-term historical structures over events.
Cliometrics
The quantitative analysis of history using economic models.
Teleology
Interpreting historical events as having a predetermined purpose.
Subaltern Studies
A focus on histories of marginalized or oppressed groups.
Epistemology
The study of Knowledge and its limits
Ontology
The study of existance
Phenomenology
A philosophical approach focusing on subjective experience.
Utilitarianism
Ethical theory prioritizing the greatest happiness for the greatest number.
Deontology
Ethics based on rules and duties
Pragmatism
A method of assessing truth by practical consquences
Anomie
A State of normlessness or societal instability
Semiotics
The study of sign and symbol in communication
Metanarrative
A grand overarching story that provides a framework for understanding
Paratext
Material surrounding the main text
Syncretism
The blending of relgiious or cultural traditions
Hermeneutics
The study of interpretation
Pantheism
The beleif that God is identical with the universe
Keynesian Economics
Economic theory emphasizing government intervention
Market equilibrium
Supply=demand
Allegory
A narrative with a symbolic meaning beyond the literal.
Anagnorisis
The moment in a play or story when a character makes a critical discovery.
Bildungsroman
A novel focusing on psychological and moral growth
Foil
A contrasting character with another to highlight qualities
Juxtaposition
Placing contrasting ideas or elements side by side
Litotes
An understatment often using double negatives
Synecdoche
A figure of speech where a part represents the whole (e.g., “wheels” for a car).
Vernacular
Everyday language
Zeitgeist
The spirit or mood of a particular historical period as reflected in literature
Aphorism
A concise statement expressing a general truth
Detente
Easing of strained relations between nations
Realpolitik
Political realism rather than idoelogical considerations
Social Darwinism
The application of evolutionary theory to justify societal hierarchies.
Absurdism
The beleif human existence is meaningless
A priori
Knowledge not dependent on experience
A posteriori
Knowledge dependent on experience
Dualism
The beleif in two fundamental principles
Empiricism
The theory knowledge arises from sensory experience
Eudaimonia
Aristotle’s concept of human flourishing or happiness.
Positivism
The beleif that knowledge is based on natural phenomena
Solipsism
The belief only one’s own mind is sure to exist
Tabula Rasa
The mind begins a blank slate
