Causal argument among historians: The case of the American civil war

Abstract

Four generations of historical writing about the causes of the Civil War are identified and, for representative writers from each generation, the method of causal argument is examined. Particular attention is paid to the nature of causal claims, implicit standard of causation, and force of causal argument. Each of these analytical categories reveals variations in the method of argument which correspond to variations in the substance of the causal claims.