Progress in Historical Studies

Has there been progress in historical studies, in the sense that we understand the past better now than previously? I argue that there has been such progress. In the case of the interpretational controversy over the American Revolution, it has consisted, among other things, in the development of interpretations that are more accurate, more comprehensive, better balanced, and better justified. In addition, the repeated development of interpretations with these characteristics has encouraged interpretational convergence, if not overall, then at least within what I call interpretive polarities, of which the competition between Whig- and Progressive-oriented interpretations of the Revolution is an example. Further, except for a certain sort of ignorance about human nature coupled with the desire for richer and more relevant interpretational meaning, probably there would have been even more convergence. However, the use of interpretational convergence as a criterion of progress in historical studies rests on a profound and widespread misunderstanding of the differences between historical studies and the physical sciences. Interpretational divergence is not necessarily a bad thing. In the case of the controversy over the Revolution, we should want even more interpretational divergence than we have gotten so far, provided it is of the right kind. The seeming-descensus that results, far from being an embarrassment to historical studies, should be regarded as one of its best features. Finally, in response to predictable relativistic and skeptical objections, there are, if not external checks on the adequacy of historical interpretations, then something that is close enough to such checks to promote a kind of growth in historical understanding that is progress worth caring about.     

环境政治中国际非政府组织的角色——基于批判地缘政治的视角

国际非政府组织（INGO）在国际环境政治中发挥着日益重要的角色,也是中国"一带一路"走出去的关键影响要素之一。批判地缘政治关注主权国家之外的非政府行为体,同时对权力概念提出了新的理解。借助其思想,本文指出国际环境政治中INGO的作用,并通过尺度-权力框架分析其行动和角色。发现：①INGO在环境等国际公共事务上作用不断凸显;②INGO在多个尺度上通过不同的权力影响环境政治;③INGO与政府存在依赖、合作和对抗等不同的互动关系。因此,应处理好与INGO的关系,借助其独特的权力助力"一带一路"建设。     

Irish Neutrality and Anglo-Irish Relations: 1921–1941

PAUL CANNING. British Policy Towards Ireland 1921–1941. New York: Oxford University Press, 1985. Pp. 344. $29.95 (US); J.P. DUGGAN. Neutral Ireland and the Third Reich. Dublin: Gill and McMillan, 1985. Pp. 330. £25.     

A Review of “The Power of Money in Congressional Campaigns, 1880–2006”

Bader, John B. Taking the Initiative: Leadership Agendas in Congress and the "Contract with America." Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press, 1996. Pp. xiv, 278. $19.95, softbound.

Campbell, James E. Cheap Seats: The Democratic Party's Advantage in U.S. House Elections. Columbus: Ohio State University Press, 1996. Pp. xxiv, 336. $22.00, softbound.

Evans, C. Lawrence and Walter J. Oleszek. Congress Under Fire: Reform Politics and the Republican Majority. New York: Houghton Miffin Company, 1997. Pp. xiii, 190. $15.56, softbound.

Koopman, Douglas L. Hostile Takeover: The House Republican Party, 1980-1995. Lanham, MD: Rowman &; Littlefield Publishers, 1996. Pp. viii, 181. $21.95, softbound.

Loomis, Burdett A. The Contemporary Congress. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1996. Pp. xii, 196. $45.00 hardbound, $21.95 softbound.