One of the arguments I often heard when working in the software field was: "Is there any point in having this school kid study history in such detail? Shouldn't there be a system in place for those with interest in science to choose science in advance?" And so on. Let me also say here that at first, it seemed that it was all right.
From there, I have heard many different answers as to why history should be studied. Some of them are as follows:
"We need to know where we came from."
"Studying history may not repeat old mistakes."
If the first evokes a bit of nostalgia, the second is utilitarianism. In today's busy life, many people like to listen to utilitarianism. Sometimes a busy life can make us think that nostalgia is useless (isn't it?). So let us look at the second argument. Do we have to go through the same process as before to make the same mistakes over and over again? Has anyone ever analyzed what went wrong? Why not read it? For example, the construction of a national monument in the city of Edinburgh began in the nineteenth century. When the amount set aside for it was reduced, it became insufficient. The House of Representatives had to approve the allocation of more money, but it was not possible (story told). Thus it still stands today as an unfinished monument. There are many lessons to be learned from utilitarianism. The first is planning; the other is financial. Want to study the history of this monument to learn all this? Assume that it is not necessary. We must learn those lessons through the Economics / Planning Textbook. This utilitarianism is not so strong.
I recently happened to read two of Harari’s books. They are called Sapiens and Homo Deus. I saw some historical studies in it, and it seemed perfectly logical. This post is inspired by that. (There are other questions as to why history research should be funded from tax money - not that there are no answers, but the point here is why students should study history, both).
Harari's History Study Argument
Harari's historiography is a kind of utilitarianism. The benefit of the journey ahead lies in the study of history. But that is not the only benefit (not to repeat mistakes).
Take this situation as we reach it. Suppose you want to proceed from here. Therefore, Harari says that we, who have only seen this state and its very recent history, have some inherent limitations of thought, which is the main source of the argument.
An easy way to analyze this is to look at some areas where rapid core changes have occurred. Example The interface of mobile phones. Most of the mobile phones we see today have touch screens. If a two-year-old child who starts seeing a phone today is told to predict what will change in mobile phones when he grows up, perhaps all of the predictions will have a touch screen. In contrast, adults who have grown up seeing the changes in mobile phones may have imagined the transition of mobile phones from one touchscreen to another. Those who have grown up watching history can think on a wider canvas (prophecy is just a thought-provoking question, and this breadth will be reflected in many other forms of thought).
(If one illustrates Harari's historiography; as we go further down the path, our field of thought is marked by a triangle, as seen on the right, thereby widening)
In Harari's words, "The study of history makes us aware that our destination is not an inevitable (or destined) destination. History reminds us that certain coincidences have led us here. Gives. ".
Now let's look at an area where things have not changed so quickly; This is an example that Harari points out. A loan/lawn is one of the most sought-after items in the market today. Many homeowners apply for home equity loans for a variety of reasons. If you look at the loan history, it is an event that began as a show of his wealth by the king of a palace in France. It takes a lot of work and a lot of money to repay a loan. Thus the loan became a sign of wealth. If someone is struggling financially, save money first and foremost by avoiding loan cleaning. Thus it became a symptom of the current financial situation of the loan owner. Loans spread from the kings to the upper classes. From that to the middle class that Maine wants to say. Those who study this history may sometimes think of doing something else instead of a backyard loan (perhaps thinking so and choosing the loan itself). Most of us have a laid-back attitude when it comes to painting a picture about history.
History and travel
In general, Harari's argument is to broaden the field of thought. There is another area where the same argument is raised by many, tourism. Doesn't getting to know life elsewhere through travel broaden the field of thought in the same way? I must say that there is. It was a personal experience to travel through China and Korea, where I realized that I could easily use the latest technology without knowing English at all.
The journey, however, must be seen in the light of today's world. It takes less than an hour for the latest news to reach this end of the world. New developments in one country are constantly changing the life and politics of another country. The world is so connected that it seems as if we live in the same world no matter where we go. One bitter consequence of this is the lack of diversity. Instead of the unique food of the place we go to, we often dine at the tourist restaurants in the tourist centers. This is not to say that there is no diversity. There is a lot. But it is just that the study of history shows us a whole new level of diversity. When we visit museums on the go, we unknowingly study history. The world that the museum opens up to is more of a history than a journey (so the museum's vastness must be taken into account in history.
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