As a professional historian, I tell evidence-based stories that help make useful sense of the past while encouraging and empowering others to do the same. Although my expertise and research center primarily on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in the United States and German-speaking Europe, my passion for expanding the historical consciousness of all people necessarily means that my interests are broad. Thinking historically means far more than knowing, memorizing, or even understanding what has occurred in the human past. It means grasping that every given moment is the direct byproduct of all those which preceded it. It means recognizing that we are all characters in a vast and grand drama, the plot of which we partly inherit and partly craft ourselves. Since the incredible complexity and dizzying dynamism of the universe make any certain prediction about the future impossible, we can only glance backward over our shoulders to better understand how we came to be where, what, and how we are as people, cultures, and societies today. Such historical consciousness is vital if we are to effectively anticipate, and more importantly, collectively decide, in which direction we shall head tomorrow.
This, my personal website, is meant as an introduction to me, my work, my ongoing research projects, and my philosophy of teaching and historical thought more generally. Those interested will find an updated curriculum vitae chronicling my education, employment, accomplishments, and publications. Most importantly, I hope that these pages will offer a window into my life and work as a professional historian, my love of teaching, and my drive to introduce others to the power of historical consciousness.
~ Eric Michael Burke, Stahnsdorf, Germany