Douglas Bisson: The Lens of Life

Greetings, fellow lovers of history. Matt Craft, AW MML, HI, here. If you enjoyed “Cynthia Bisson: The Connection of All Life” and you’re curious what her husband, Douglas Bisson, has to say, then you are in luck. For, he is this week’s character!

            “[B]orn in Rockville Centre, New York, [and raised] in south Florida (Fort Lauderdale and Pompano Beach),”[1] Dr. Bisson received his Bachelor of Arts “in History from Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida,”[2] and his “Master of Arts degree and Ph.D. are from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.”[3] While at Ohio State, he “studied Latin, French, German and Dutch,”[4] making him multilingual, a trait which I personally think qualifies him as interesting. He remarked, “I have a reading knowledge of the first two, but my Dutch and most of my German have deserted me.”[5] [LOL!]

            Like his wife said in her character profile, she and Dr. Mr. Bisson joined the Belmont history family in 1987 – a year before I was born! Can you believe it? I hardly can! – Anywho, Dr. Bisson said, “I saw a job advertised by what was then known as Belmont College.  The description was for an entry-level position in ‘Early Modern History.’ I was hired in 1987.”[6] Dr. Bisson is indeed a veteran sensei;[7] he has been teaching for more than thirty years and has taught at Belmont since 1987. In addition to his teaching, he finds time to work as an active historian. He told me, “I keep busy as the sole active author of a two-volume history of England.  The sixth edition of A History of England will be published in the winter of 2014.”[8] (Don’t know about you, but I’m totally thinking of picking up A History of England!)

And now, my exclusive interview with the other Dr. Bisson – Dr. Mr. Bisson!

CRAFT: Why history?  What first got you interested?

BISSON: As a boy I was entranced by the “island story,” that is, the history of Great Britain.  As a middle school student, I read the books of Mary M. Luke (Catherine the Queen,[9] A Crown for Elizabeth, [10]Gloriana[11]) and the historical novels of Margaret Irwin (Young Bess,[12] Royal Flush,[13] The Stranger Prince[14]).  In high school, I read the biographies of Mary, queen of Scots,[15] and Oliver Cromwell[16] by Antonia Fraser.[17]  I was hooked.  Later, I spent much time reading about the history of the United States.  I am something of a Lincoln buff.  I have read about twenty biographies of the sixteenth president[18] and many books about the Civil War.[19]

CRAFT: Is there a person you admire or model yourself after?

BISSON: I admire my old master and Doktor-Vater,[20] Clayton Roberts.  He is a wonderful historian and a fine man. He turns 90 on the 10th of November.

CRAFT: Who is your favorite intellectual? Where and how do you see his or her historical relevance?

BISSON: Among living persons, I suppose I admire Garry Wills[21] (though his latest books attacking the Church are too angry and too polemical for my taste).  John Stuart Mill[22] would be my favorite “Dead White Male.”[23]

CRAFT: Do you bring history home with you?

BISSON: I cannot avoid it (nor would I want to).

CRAFT: Does your family share your passion for history or teaching?

BISSON: Naturally!  I married a historian, Dr. Cindy Story Bisson.  Although our son Richard majored in physics and mathematics at Vanderbilt University, he was also a member of Phi Alpha Theta, the history honorary fraternity.

CRAFT: What role does history play in education?

BISSON: I suppose history is the lens though which one may approach almost every question, issue, and field of study.  “Not to know what has passed before you is to be forever a child,” said Cicero.[24]  In the current world, I fear that most will remain children forever.

CRAFT: Do you feel history gets enough attention or focus in all levels of school?

BISSON: Definitely not.  Less and less history is taught in schools.  Students show up in my classes with precious little understanding of the history of the United States or the historical origins of the world they inhabit.  It is discouraging (but it keeps me employed).

CRAFT: What is the most important thing students leave your courses with?

BISSON: I hope they leave with an understanding of the complexity of history and how challenging it is for us to understand and describe the role of agency, motive, and causation in history.

CRAFT:  What do you read for pleasure?

BISSON: All my reading is for pleasure, since I love to read.  I especially enjoy the novels of Jane Austen, [25]Joseph Conrad, [26]and Thomas Hardy.[27]  I read a great deal of ancient history; I admire the work of Mary Beard, [28]Barry Strauss,[29] and Garret Fagan.[30]  My favorite ancient author is Tacitus.[31]

CRAFT: What book of historical nature would you recommend that everyone read?

BISSON: Americans should read one book about themselves: Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America.[32]

CRAFT: What book would you recommend that any president, prime minister, or head of state should read?

BISSON: Thucydides,[33] The Peloponnesian War.  It contains the greatest lesson any modern statesman can learn: “Democracy is incapable of empire.”

CRAFT: In your opinion, has popular culture ever portrayed history accurately? Why or why not?

BISSON: Not very often.  I thought Spielberg’s Lincoln was awfully good.   But I am not sure that historical authenticity is always a good thing.  Some historical films, for instance, are dreadful bores.  See the 1953 film, Martin Luther, commissioned by the Lutheran Church.  Snoozers!  Ken Loach’s film about the Irish War for Independence, The Wind that Shakes the Barley, is remarkably faithful to the spirit of the time (although the characters are fictional). 

CRAFT: In your opinion, why does medieval times/history have a negative connotation for some people?

BISSON: The images derived from films are relentlessly sensational. Blood, gore, cruelty, disease, and ignorance are all on display.  That makes for a “ripping yarn” rather than an accurate picture. However, the emphasis on “realism’ means the complicated reality of medieval life disappears.  But there are films that do convey something of the texture of lived experience in the Middle Ages.  See the opening scenes of The Lion in Winter (1968).

CRAFT: What is your opinion of Renaissance Festivals, and why?

BISSON: It’s harmless fun for the most part.  But don’t take any of it seriously.

CRAFT: In your opinion, why does the history of the Byzantine Empire receive less attention in education than that of the Roman Empire if the Byzantines were the cultural successors of the Romans?

BISSON: The Byzantine Empire is usually treated as a sibling civilization to the Ummayads, Abbasids, and the early medieval West.  But I don’t think the Byzantines are really the “cultural successors of the Romans.”  While they called themselves “Romans” (Romaioi), they called themselves this in Greek.  They called the emperor basileus (“royal king”) not imperator. The Byzantines are an eastern-oriented culture and Western Europe gets the attention in the textbooks.  I think you are right that more attention should be paid to this great empire and its extraordinary artistic and cultural traditions.

CRAFT: In your opinion, who was the greatest Roman Emperor, in terms of achievements and contributions to the Empire’s stability? Who was the worst?

BISSON: Augustus[34] is the greatest Roman emperor.  Hadrian[35] was the most interesting person among the emperors.  As for the worst, take your pick.  Caligula,[36] Nero,[37] Domitian,[38] Caracalla,[39] Elagabalus,[40] the innumerable barracks-room emperors of the third century—they’re all pretty bad.

CRAFT: In your opinion, who was the greatest Byzantine Emperor, in terms of achievements and contributions to the Empire’s stability? Who was the worst?

BISSON: There are 88 of these guys! I suppose Justinian,[41] Heraclius,[42] Alexius I Comnenus[43] rank high on the list. Constantine V[44] (nicknamed “S--t-Head”) ranks pretty low.

CRAFT: In your opinion, who was the greatest European monarch, in terms of achievements and contributions to his or her realm’s stability? Charlemagne? Henry VII? Who was the worst?

BISSON: Charlemagne[45] ranks high, but what we really know about his “agenda” is limited by the fewness of the sources.  I have a reluctant admiration for Henry VII,[46] but I think he was a lucky – and ruthless — politician rather than a far-sighted statesman.  It is hard to say much good about Edward II[47] as a man, husband, father, or king.  Richard II[48] still seems like a vainglorious fool (Shakespeare kind of got him right). I like St. Louis (Louis IX).[49]  He still seems like a chivalrous Christian king (in spite of his anti-Judaism). He must have been great: they named a baseball team for him.  His grandfather, Philip II Augustus,[50] was the maker of the feudal monarchy of France.  But he was a nasty little piece of work.

CRAFT: In your opinion, are the Renaissance and Reformation periods ears in and of themselves or merely continuations of the High Middle Ages? 

BISSON: This is a big question (too big for a short answer here).  But we should keep in mind that periodization is just that.  These are names for events rather than things that possess agency.  Too often students – and their professors—reify these abstractions.

Thanks a million for reading, peeps. Stay tuned!

AW MML, HI

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[1] Douglas Bisson, personal interview, October 22, 2013.

[2] Bisson.

[3] Bisson.

[4] Bisson.

[5] Bisson.

[6] Bisson.

[7] Japanese term for teacher.

[8] Bisson.

[9] A 1967 book on Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536) – first wife of Henry VIII of England.

[10] A 1970 book on Elizabeth I of England (1533-1603) – daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

[11] A 1973 book on Elizabeth I.

[12] A 1944 novel dramatizing Elizabeth I’s early life.

[13] A 1948 novel about Henrietta of England (1644-1670) – daughter of Charles I of England.

[14][14] A 1938 novel about Count Palestine of the Rhine (1616-1682) – a German nobleman and Renaissance man.

[15] Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-1587).

[16] Oliver Cromwell (1599-1658) – a British official who had handled matters in England, Scotland, and Ireland.

[17] Antonia Fraser (1932-present) – a contemporary and accomplished writer with both British and Irish tendencies.

[18] Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865).

[19] The American Civil War (1861-1865).

[20] Doktor-Vater – mentor and advisor for doctoral students.

[21] Garry Wills (1934- present) – an American writer known for particularly writing about Roman Catholic Church history.

[22] John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) – a British intellectual and government official.

[23] Term for an intellectual whose significance may have been overplayed.

[24]Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 B.C.-43 B.C.) – a Roman intellectual and official.

[25] Jane Austen (1775-1817) – a British writer known for romance novels.

[26] Joseph Conrad (1857-1924) – a Polish writer.

[27] Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) – an English writer.

[28] Winifred Mary Beard (1955-preset) – a British classicist and a Cambridge University professor.

[29] Barry Strauss – a contemporary historian specialized in ancient history.

[30] Garret Fagan – a Pennsylvania State University “Professor of Ancient History.”

[31] Publius Cornelius Tacitus (56 A.D. – sometime after 117 A.D.) – Imperial Roman senator and historian.

[32] Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859) – an early nineteenth-century French political scholar and historian best known for his analysis of America.

[33] Thucydides (460 B.C.-395 B.C.) – an ancient Greek historian and soldier.

[34] Augustus Caesar (63 B.C.-14 A.D.; r. 27 B. C.-14 A.D.) – Roman emperor.

[35] Hadrian (76 A.D.-138 A.D.; r.  117 A. D.-138 A.D.) – Roman emperor.

[36] Caligula (12 A.D.-41 A.D.; r. 37 A.D.-41 A.D.) – Roman emperor.

[37] Nero (37 A.D.-68 A.D.; r. 54 A.D.-68 A.D.) – Roman emperor.

[38] Domitian (51 A.D.-96 A.D.; r. 81 A.D.-96 A.D.) – Roman emperor.

[39] Caracalla (188 A.D.-217 A.D.; r. 198 A.D.-217 A.D.) – Roman emperor.

[40] Elagabalus (203 A.D.-222 A.D.; r. 218 A.D.-222 A.D.) – Roman emperor.

[41] Justinian I (482 A.D.-565 A.D.; r. 527 A.D.-565 A.D.) – Byzantine emperor.

[42] Heraclius (575 A.D.-641 A.D.; r. 610 A.D.-641 A.D.) – Byzantine emperor.

[43] Alexius I Comnenus (1056 A.D. or 1048 A.D.-1118 A.D.; r. 1081 A.D.-1118 A.D.) – Byzantine emperor.

[44] Constantine V (718 A.D.-775 A.D.; r. 741 A.D.-775 A.D.) – Byzantine emperor.

[45] Charlemagne (742, 747, or 748 A.D.-814 A.D.) – King of the Franks (since 768 A.D.); Holy Roman emperor (since 800).

[46] Henry VII (1457 A.D.-1509 A.D.; r. 1485 A.D.-1509 A.D.) – King of England.

[47] Edward II (1312 A.D.-1377 A.D.; r. 1327A.D.-1377 A.D.) – King of England.

[48] Richard II (1367 A.D.-1400 A.D.; r. 1377 A.D.-1399 A.D.) – King of England.

[49] Louis IX (1214 A.D.-1270 A.D.; r. 1226 A.D.-1270 A.D.) – King of France.

[50] Philip II Augustus (1165 A.D.-1223 A.D.; r. 1180 A.D.-1223 A.D.) – King of France.