Although events in history occurred over a long span of time and development, history first became an academic subject a little more than 100 years ago (McNeill 12). Since then, a plethora of controversies appeared regarding how historians, scholars, and intellectuals should examine and analyze history. Among the initial methods of studying history was the scientific research method, or scientific source criticism, which fundamentally extracts valid, legitimate facts from a diverse range of historical sources. Throughout time, however, the facts derived from this method of historical study gradually altered, leading to a new method of historical study: using facts and combining them with opinions and goals to constitute personal interpretations. As Oscar Handlin zealously asserts, historians and scholars should provide a strict examination of history based on a chronological study of known and verifiable facts as opposed to using verifiable facts as the basis for their own interpretation, influenced by their own group, experiences, beliefs, and personal motives. Through implementing a strict examination of history, historians can successfully detect and eradicate bias in their writings, allow the government as well as individuals to gain an insight into the past in order to secure and progress the future, and grasp the magnitude of truth.…
History is always about perceptions. Therefore there are generally two sides of history: the “winner´s” and the “loser´s” side. As history is normally written down by the winners, which is called grand narrative, only few people know which experiences the losers, or…
One, two, three, four the regions of origin want no more. In the article “Who Owns the Past” by Joyce Mortimer talks about how some of the artifacts were made for certain people; museums own them now and many people are trying to get the artifacts back. The region of origin should get their artifacts back because it was theirs in the first place and some of the artifacts were very personal to some people. Artifacts should be given back to the regions of origin. In the article “Who Owns the Past” in passage one, paragraph four, sentence three, states ‘’Some museums have objects that were made for private Native American religious ceremonies and were never meant to be seen by the public.”…
[1] What do historians create with the history they account? History is a story that never ends. The events of the present in essence have already happened in the past. Historians try to make sense of the present by deconstructing the past. Only through analysis of the past can one understand the present. I remember playing cowboys and Indians as a child. I would always play the part of the cowboys, and consequently the cowboys always won. At the end of my day 's adventure I went to my parents to tell them of my conquest against the Indians. I made certain to include every detail of the battle -- from first charge to last saber stroke. History was made that day in my backyard with the green figurinesoldier on horsebackwhose defeat of the Indian nemesis forces was both courageous and honorable.…
“Multiple, conflicting perspectives are among the truths of history. No single objective or universal account could ever put an end to this endless creative dialogue within and between the past and the present.”…
Studying history in the making seems a strenuous task. Many will say that we lack detachment and objectivity to judge the sequence of events. But if we base our study upon previous historical facts, and thus draw a strict comparison between past and present, bringing to light what the actual history is or is not, then the objectivity seems somewhat restored.…
important to realize that some facets of history are written with a biased opinion and it is our job to…
Growing up I always dreaded history, I never understood why we had to learn about the past. It wasn’t until a couple years ago that I realize that history is what shaped the world into what it is today and where I stand in this world. As a Mexican living in the United States history has really helped me understand why my family and I don’t have the same opportunity as white people. When I read the first 4 chapters to Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewen right away I was able to relate to what he was saying. Being a person of color learning history growing up I noticed that the history books only showed one point of view. A lot of the truth was covered up and that’s why now when I read something historical it’s very important for me to read…
John Keegan, ‘How Hitler could have won the war’, in Robert Cowley (ed.), What if? Military historians imagine what might have been (1999), pp. 295-309, and ‘Introduction’…
William Faulkner once said: “The past is never dead, it is not even past." This still holds truth today. Decades and even centuries on, our uncomfortable historical legacies have lingered on, troubling most of us, and shadowing the peace and stability of the world. For one thing, the enormous contrast between the past and the present has given birth to confusion and thus self-contradiction inside many countries. Russians, for example, are ambitious to rebuild their past while still feeling shame about the Yeltsin years. This coexistence of both pride and inferior complex composes ambivalence, which further leads to the at-times irrationality and overhaste in Russia’s conduct. For another, sufferings in the past have factored in hatred and hostility at the present. One of the latest examples lies in this year’s East Asia, where the emergence of a range of territorial disputes rooted in history has provoked more broadly mutual hatred that had prevailed for long. A bloodier example is the enduring conflicts between Pakistan and Israel, in which the intertwining history has accounted for the death of tens of thousands. The past seems holding our world back, hampering it from stepping into the future.…
Representing an ‘absolute truth’ is impossible. Inherent human bias affects both history and memory. We unintentionally falsify parts of the past in order to emphasise the nature of past events we find central to our individual beliefs. Therefore we are challenged with obvious limitations in representing the ‘truth’. The interplay of history and memory however, leads to a rather satiable and tangible level of truth. Nonetheless, it is yet to be seen that this satisfiable level of truth will be riddled with bias as it is human nature to have an opinion/perspective that makes reconciling (accepting) memory and history a great challenge. Ultimately, this satiable level of truth creates compelling and unexpected insights into the past as assumptions that have previously been thought as true and views can change when face with uncertainty (or challenged by evidence). Mark Baker’s biographical novel The Fiftieth Gate highlights his confrontation with the terror of his parents’ childhood. Similarly, ‘Big Fish’ composed by Tim Burton which explores the strained relationship between a father and son both express the ways both history and memory generate compelling and unexpected insights.…
There comes a time where the man becomes a monster, and the monster becomes a man. Where the civilized turn barbarisitc, and the barbaristic turn civilized. From then on out we enter in an existent world filled with morbid creatures, medieval weaponry, and confusing languages. Larping is the name of the game, which means Live Action Role Playing. A live game where the individual player plays a role in a collectively created setting called the medieval fantasy world. This world has its own state laws, religions, and human nature mainly reflecting the medieval era. Early Psychologists defined role playing games as being a form of escapism from reality, but at modern times, the way of gaming changed, because…
However, he warns, the present can erase outlines of the past “or even willfully destroy its foundations” (p. 8). He cites “the stunning looting of the Baghdad Museum and the repeated rape of archaeological sites throughout Iraq [as] ample proof” of this, explaining “what is stolen is not just so much merchandise for sale, but an entire people’s collective memory, a priceless substance they desperately need to protect them, for a civilized people’s heritage is its best armor against the assaults of barbarism.”…
Howard Zinn once stated “Anyone reading history should understand from the start that there is no such thing as impartial history.” Impartial history is when records have no bias or favoritism toward either side of a conflict. I agree with Howard Zinn's quote because nothing is ever completely fair and most times people will be portrayed as a bad person and people will not care to tell their side of the story. For example the treaty of Versailles was not fair to Germany but they were forced to sign it. As the west fought with Hitler some people such as the Nazis may have agreed with him. Most often students will learn from their countries point of view. The country always likes to believe they had made the right decisions. As a result they are going to blame the opposing forces for any harm done to the country. Another example of history not being fair is when the explorers found “The New World” the Native Americans were kicked off their land, killed, and taken as slaves. Americans have a national holiday for Christopher Columbus regarding him finding the Americas even though people were already civilized on the land. African People were also enslaved. The African civilizations were not advanced enough with technology and weapons and were not able to resist very well. The British made A White Mans Burden in order to justify their actions. History from one sides point of view may seem like it was the right thing to do or they are the victim often times you do not hear the complete story from both point of views. Neither the Native Americans or the Africans did anything to deserve the slavery or punishment. There are many other events throughout history that prove impartial history does not exist.…
Therefore, my claim is that to a large extent, history is biased. As Samuel Butler (1835-1902) says, “God cannot alter the past though historians can.” History can be changed through the different biases of various historians depending on what they assume and publish. History can be changed by what was seen of past events. To keep record of said events, it was effective to immediately take note of the event, however, history can be easily changed due to the subjective viewpoint of the author. When you’re living through an event it may seem genuinely open and you can’t be sure on how it may eventually turn out, but when looking back on them, it is very hard to avoid the feeling that they’re inevitable and couldn’t have happened in any other way. This can easily link to hindsight bias. An example is that in March 1980, the US president Jimmy Carter sought to rescue seventy Americans who were being held hostage in Iran. The mission aborted as a sandstorm disabled half of the helicopter that was being used. The Journalist records it as “doomed from the start” but they wrote that after knowing the rescue had failed. Another common bias in history is conformational bias. A bad historian may be tempted to simply search for evidence to support his theory yet a good historian is likely to do the opposite and actively seek facts that goes against his hypothesis. Another important bias that affects history is national bias. Historians view other nations’ version of events with a predetermined perspective that casts a more favoured light upon themselves. An example that includes both national bias and conformational bias is that even during the same events, such as World War 2, each country had proof that would place the blame on others, while…