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 Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2010 6:07 am
I don't want silly answers for this. I make this thread out of intellectual curiosity, really.
Anyway, I'm currently taking my second historiography course and several questions come up repeatedly:
-What is history?
-What is the role of history?
-Why study history?
-What is the role of the historian?
-How is it useful?
-Related to the above question: is history useful, in your opinion?
-Are there only certain portions of history that should be studied? If so, explain.
-Does it have to be useful for it to be studied?
-Is there a difference between history and memory? If yes, explain.
The questions above are the ones I'd like to see you guys answer. Pick one or several. I'm curious to see what both history majors and non-history majors think.
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Posted: Tue Dec 14, 2010 7:03 am
My art teacher had a funny way of saying it.
History = His Story.
Basically, everybody who ever had it successfully their way in the past was able to choose the way it was written for us in the future to recollect. While it may not necessarily have been true at times, it's one of the only few records we have to go by aside from the mountain of evidence researchers shovel through on a consecutive basis to try to weed out the truth.
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Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 3:24 am
-What is history?
The study of events that have happened in the past
-What is the role of history?
To help humanity learn it's roots, where everything came from and try to not repeat past mistakes
-Why study history?
Why not? History is lovely heart
-What is the role of the historian?
To learn as much as they can and distribute that knowledge to the wider populace
-How is it useful?
Helps people learn about the past (thus reminding them that the future is always a brighter place) and in learning attempts to stop the repetition of passed mistakes
-Related to the above question: is history useful, in your opinion?
Yes, of course
-Are there only certain portions of history that should be studied? If so, explain.
Of course not! All history is important! But I believe historians should only really study the areas and times that interest them, because if you aren't interested you won't try hard.
-Does it have to be useful for it to be studied?
Gosh no, people study all sorts of useless things. History is at least something useful.
-Is there a difference between history and memory? If yes, explain.
Yes, because memory is a very individual thing. I may remember an event completely differently from how you remember it, even though it was the same event. However, history looks at all the views of events and then uses that to discover something which is a better approximation of the actual event. It's more subjective than memory. It also goes back a lot further. I don't remember the Holy Roman Empire, but history can tell me about it from various investigations into the subject.
This all coming from the Biomedical Science student, take that as you will
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Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2010 4:17 pm
-What is history?
a person's view/opinion on something that happened in the past.
-What is the role of history?
to help people learn their roots, and not to repeat past mistakes
-Why study history?
to pass tests? to answer questions a person might have
-What is the role of the historian?
to help discover artifacts that help people learn history
-How is it useful?
help people see past mistakes and not make them again
-Related to the above question: is history useful, in your opinion?
yes, but alot of times the information is not applied/used
-Are there only certain portions of history that should be studied? If so, explain.
No, who knows how things can come in handy in this world...better more prepared than less
-Does it have to be useful for it to be studied?
No, i suppose if you enjoy something studying it is ok
-Is there a difference between history and memory? If yes, explain
No, but for the fact memory is a person's own account of what happened history is the same but is publicly accepted and written down and etc
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Posted: Wed Dec 22, 2010 11:37 am
-What is history?
A subject I am good at.
-What is the role of history?
To be the subject that I am good at.
-Why study history?
Because I am good/enjoy it.
-What is the role of the historian?
To know, and discover, history.
-How is it useful?
So that if somebody wished to know something that happened, somebody else knows it.
-Related to the above question: is history useful, in your opinion?
Yes, it is one of the main reasons I am useful.
-Are there only certain portions of history that should be studied? If so, explain.
No. If only some parts of history are studied, then we don't know the context/significance of the history we would be studying.
-Does it have to be useful for it to be studied?
Nope. Finding the use for it is all the fun.
-Is there a difference between history and memory? If yes, explain.
History happens no matter what. A memory is only the history that is remembered. We don't study history, we study memories.
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