Geschichte als Theorie der Gelegenheiten oder der Simulationsnexus geschichtswissenschaftlicher Erklärungen

Abstract

Justification of knowledge and the method of explanation are questions central to the philosophy of science. Well known problems occur if the attempt is made to develop a methodologically unified approach that encompasses both physics and history. These problems arise from the differentiation between explanation and understanding in science. In this paper, I introduce a concept of explanation in historical scholarship in order to address these problems. To do so, I outline an understanding of explanations based on the concept of simulating a certain historical space of events (Ereignisraum) as well as the opportunities, historical actors could have found within that space to act. Therefore, I argue that the way historical knowledge is produced can be understood as a closed circle of simulations.

Keywords

• philosophy of science
• understanding vs. explanation in history
• historical simulation