What if history had unfolded differently? 

For centuries, historians, philosophers, theologians, politicians, journalists, and novelists have imagined alternative paths the past might have taken. In Predicting the Past: Counterfactual History from Antiquity to the Present, Dr. Gavriel Rosenfeld offers the first comprehensive history of this enduring and often misunderstood form of historical inquiry. 

Join Dr. Gavriel Rosenfeld, President of the Center for Jewish History and author of Predicting the Past, for a conversation with renowned historian Jeffrey S. Gurock, whose own groundbreaking work in counterfactual history includes The Holocaust Averted: An Alternate History of American Jewry, 1938 to 1967. Together, they will explore why we are drawn to historical “what ifs” and what imagining alternative outcomes can reveal about the past we actually inherited. 

Spanning more than three millennia, Rosenfeld’s two-volume study examines counterfactual thinking from ancient Mesopotamia to contemporary America, from Herodotus and the Roman Empire to the Crusades, the French Revolution, the American Civil War, and World War II. Along the way, he considers the missed opportunities, close calls, fantasies, and nightmares that have shaped our understanding of history. 

By asking what might have happened, Rosenfeld argues, we can gain new insight into what happened and why.

About the Speakers
Gavriel D. Rosenfeld is the Robin and Joseph Kanarek Professor of History at Fairfield University and President of the Center for Jewish History. He specializes in the history of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust, memory studies, and counterfactual history. He is the author of numerous books, including the two-volume Predicting the Past: Counterfactual History from Antiquity to the Present (De Gruyter Oldenbourg, 2026). 

Jeffrey S. Gurock is the Libby M. Klaperman Professor of Jewish History at Yeshiva University. His scholarship encompasses American Jewish history, Jewish sports history, and counterfactual history. He is the author of The Holocaust Averted: An Alternate History of American Jewry, 1938 to 1967 (Rutgers University Press, 2015).

Please join us for a reception and book signing. Rosenfeld's two-volume study will be available for purchase for $29.99.