Fostering Empathy And Historical Thinking In Students Through The Narrative Method In History Lessons

Abstract

This article examines how the narrative method fosters empathy and historical thinking in school history lessons. Building on research in cognitive psychology, philosophy of history, and history education, the study conceptualizes narrative as a disciplined form of inquiry that helps students coordinate sources, perspectives, and causal reasoning while cultivating empathy-with-distance. Using conceptual synthesis and hermeneutic analysis of seminal works by Bruner, Vygotsky, Ricoeur, Wineburg, Seixas, Rüsen, and others, the paper argues that narrative tasks invite students to reconstruct historically situated intentions and constraints, make plausible inferences where the archive is partial, and evaluate competing accounts based on evidence. The discussion outlines classroom implications for sourcing, contextualization, and corroboration, shows how oral, written, and digital storytelling can render reasoning visible, and proposes assessment criteria that value coherence, evidence use, and ethical representation. The article concludes that narrative-centered instruction strengthens both the emotional resonance and the disciplinary rigor of history learning, thereby preparing students to navigate contested pasts responsibly.