History
When I was in university, I majored in history and economics. But it is history that has always been my first love, which was why I opted to do a fourth year in the discipline. And truth be told, it was the best year of my tertiary education, what with attending seminars and writing an academic exercise, not to mention the mischiefs that honours students get up to.
For some of my friends and many of my relatives, they never understood my fascination with history. To them. the past is passe and should stay that way - there's no value in studying what had transpired in the corridors of time. But I must respectfully object because history is more than a collection of facts about the past. In many instances, facts have nothing to do with history. History is what the victors made it out to be. (You don't see the vanquished writing history, do you?) Very often, this is to justify their victory and legitimise their subsequent rule. Even when facts are involved, there can be different versions of history because they are told by human beings with differing backgrounds and beliefs. So history is about the interpretation of facts and they can change over time. Revisionism, in particular, is about rewriting history with either newly discovered information or a reinterpretation of existing information. The assumption being that history, as it has been traditionally told, may not be entirely accurate.
On a personal level, history is more relevant to us than we know. For example, most of us are or were curious about who our ancestors were and where they hailed from. The desire to know our roots speaks of the need for personal histories to centre ourselves and define our place within the greater society. Everyday, we are also drawing upon our personal histories to navigate through the physical and social realms. Without referencing our past, life can be difficult, if not impossible. Just look at those with Alzheimer's disease and you'd know what I mean. So history is extremely relevant, even if people are not always aware that they use it everyday of their lives.
For some of my friends and many of my relatives, they never understood my fascination with history. To them. the past is passe and should stay that way - there's no value in studying what had transpired in the corridors of time. But I must respectfully object because history is more than a collection of facts about the past. In many instances, facts have nothing to do with history. History is what the victors made it out to be. (You don't see the vanquished writing history, do you?) Very often, this is to justify their victory and legitimise their subsequent rule. Even when facts are involved, there can be different versions of history because they are told by human beings with differing backgrounds and beliefs. So history is about the interpretation of facts and they can change over time. Revisionism, in particular, is about rewriting history with either newly discovered information or a reinterpretation of existing information. The assumption being that history, as it has been traditionally told, may not be entirely accurate.
On a personal level, history is more relevant to us than we know. For example, most of us are or were curious about who our ancestors were and where they hailed from. The desire to know our roots speaks of the need for personal histories to centre ourselves and define our place within the greater society. Everyday, we are also drawing upon our personal histories to navigate through the physical and social realms. Without referencing our past, life can be difficult, if not impossible. Just look at those with Alzheimer's disease and you'd know what I mean. So history is extremely relevant, even if people are not always aware that they use it everyday of their lives.
Comments