Just thinking about how as historians one of our tasks is going to be changing historical conversations from being about how individuals were "great" or someone to admire to conversations about how you are *interested in* a historical figure. We need to move beyond mythologising.

I think this is something that is easier for medievalists than modernists, (and also why I really struggle with calling say the study of the 20th century "history") because you have less skin in the game. Medieval people are quite different to us so we don't think of them as "us"

Like I am interested in Charles IV and I think he was quite clever. I don't want to hang out with him. Milíč who I wrote my PhD on was absolutely wild and would hate me. I am obsessed with him, for sure, but I don't need to look up to him.

I think it is helpful to remember that historical people were people and to empathise with them, because that makes for better history. But what we need to do is remember that people are people, and therefore probably not worth idolising. Empathy and interest aren't reverence.

Anyway TL/DR Historical people are not your friend or your dad and you probs shouldn't look up to them and call them great