SOURCE: Hardy, Grant. “Can an Ancient Chinese Historian Contribute to Modern Western Theory? The Multiple Narratives of Ssu-ma Ch'ien.¹” History and Theory: Studies in the Philosophy of History 33, no. 1 (1994): 20-38.

In the following essay, Hardy analyzes the rhetorical strategy Qian employed in his historical writings, including the use of multiple narrations and interpretations.

How history differs from fiction is a question which continues to vex philosophers, historians, and literary critics. Although the issue seems to hinge on rather commonsensical notions, and though historical research continues apace in accordance with professional standards, any careful consideration of the question quickly yields unexpected difficulties. It turns out that the past itself is entirely inaccessible (only accounts and evidence existing in the present can be used by historians), that what counts as explanation is fiercely debated, that imagination is essential to the work of historians, and that narrative itself may or may...