在“国史框架”之外寻求历史——奥斯古德的美利坚殖民地史研究

Seeking History beyond the Framework of National History——On Osgood's Study of American Colonial History

赫伯特·奥斯古德是19世纪80年代以来美利坚殖民地史研究的代表性人物之一,帝国学派的开拓者。他因不满充斥狭隘国史偏见的"辉格式解释",以及美国民主制度的"条顿起源"说,在美国学界,率先倡导跳出"国史"框架,运用英帝国视域,利用科学的方法,收集双方档案,从制度层面,客观地研究美利坚殖民地史。这种带有空间转向的研究方法,把美利坚殖民地史研究从国史框架中解放出来,为美国历史编纂学带来了新气象和新视域。

Since 1880 s,Herbert L. Osgood was one of the leading figures in the field of American colonial history and the pioneer of imperial school. He objected the Whig interpretation in a narrow national perspective and the Teutonic origin of American democratic institution,therefore,he used scientific method to impartially study colonial institutional history with bilateral documents in imperial perspective. This "spatial turn"approach liberated the study of American colonial history from National perspective,and introduced a new mood and a new perspective into American historiography.