Marc Bloch and the Logic of Comparative History

This article is an attempt to set forth the logic of the comparative method and to indicate how this method can be used in historical research. It is based on an examination of the works of Marc Bloch, who was one of the most eminent craftsmen ever to work in the genre of comparative history, and whose article published in 1928 under the title Pour une histoire comparee des societies europeenes' is still one of the most intelligent and compelling theoretical treatments of the subject. Because of Bloch's wide range of interests and his sensitivity to philosophical and theoretical problems of history, his work raises many of the important questions about the nature, uses, and limits of comparative history.