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Okay, so why do we have to study history, like it's life ruining, it's not practical, it's not even one of the universally praised STEM disciplines, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
Heimler's History explains why studying history is vital for critical thinking, understanding the present, and cultivating humility and love.
Key Takeaways
- History teaches how to think critically and appreciate complexity.
- Understanding history is essential for making sense of current events.
- Studying history cultivates humility and love, enriching personal character.
- History counters oversimplified narratives and promotes empathy.
- The discipline is vital for navigating a complex, divided world.
Summary
- Studying history teaches critical thinking by encouraging analysis of complex causes and effects rather than memorizing facts.
- History helps navigate current political, social, and environmental issues by providing context and understanding of past events.
- The past is never truly past; it shapes present identities and societal dynamics.
- History bestows classical virtues such as humility by showing our limited knowledge and the vastness of human experience.
- It also cultivates love and compassion by encouraging empathy for people in the past who cannot defend themselves.
- History challenges simplistic narratives like good vs. evil and promotes nuanced understanding of human events.
- The study of history prepares students to think with nuance and complexity in a polarized world.
- History is distinct from STEM disciplines but equally essential for understanding human society and ethical behavior.
- Engaging deeply with history can make the study meaningful and even inspiring despite its challenges.
- The video encourages students to embrace history for personal growth and societal insight.
Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown
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Like those are useful to the world, but history.
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If we're not careful, we start thinking about history in terms of what my grandpappy used to say.
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Son, that is about as useful as a bag of farts.
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Like for many of you, the school year is starting next week and summer is drawing to a close, and when that school year begins, you're going to be taking AP World History, AP US History, AP European History.
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And maybe your guts pucker up tighter than a snare drum at the thought of taking those courses.
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So why in the world are you doing this?
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I mean, I know it's required and if you're taking AP, it's because you want an impressive transcript and credit in college, but let's be honest, none of those reasons gets you up in the morning or makes your heart beat fast.
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So let me give you a couple of reasons why we study history, and I think if you let them, these will make your heart beat fast and maybe just maybe help you enjoy the hard work that lies ahead.
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So let me give you three reasons why I think the study of history is worth your time.
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Reason number one, studying history teaches you how to think.
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And oh my Lanta, do we need people who know how to think in this world?
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But that's not our typical experience of the history class.
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Like ask anybody on the street, their opinion of learning history will be pretty bleak.
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Because their class went a little something like this.
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In 1930, the Republican controlled House of Representatives.
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In an effort to alleviate the effects of the.
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Anyone?
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Anyone?
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The Great Depression.
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Passed the.
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Anyone?
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Anyone?
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Anyone?
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A tariff bill.
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The Holly Smoot Tariff Act, which.
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Anyone?
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Raised or lowered?
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Raised tariffs.
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Now, that's hilarious and Ferris Bueller's Day Off, but it is tragic in real life.
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Because so many people think that's what history is, it's just a recounting of barren facts of the past.
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To which I say, who cares?
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No, that is not what history is for.
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History is for learning how to think, to make claims based on the best evidence available.
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To construct persuasive arguments and analysis and to appreciate the foreignness of the past.
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To get comfortable with the utter complexity of our world.
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Like it is a classic power move for someone, whether they're a dictator or a ridiculous cable news pundit.
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To reduce the complexity of the world down to us versus them.
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Or good versus evil.
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But anyone who has learned to think historically knows that real life is not that simple.
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There are a thousand competing explanations for any given event.
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And all of them have some merit, although some have more merit than others.
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In history class, you're going to learn what only history can teach you, namely to think about the infinite complexity of the past.
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In terms of change over time and cause and effect.
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And you're going to learn how to compare disparate events and people and try to come to terms with how they're similar and how they're different.
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And if in the middle of that it feels like you're drowning in complexity.
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Then that means you're doing it right.
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So let me just say it again, we need, we need people in this world who are capable of thinking in nuance and complexity.
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And it's the study of history that will deliver such a posture of mind to you.
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Okay, reason number two, the study of history helps you navigate the present moment.
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This morning you woke up in a world in which there are fiery political debates raging and environmental concerns plaguing us.
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And social tension dominating the national and international discussion.
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And let me be plain, science will not help you navigate those tumultuous waters.
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Nor will engineering or mathematics.
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And to be clear, those are all magnificent disciplines for which I am grateful.
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But they will not help you understand why politicians in many states are proposing resolutions to ban certain historical topics from being discussed in the K-12 classroom.
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Those disciplines will not help you understand why a crowd of people broke into the Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
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Looking to kill Mike Pence and create havoc and reap destruction.
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Science will not even help you understand why just a couple of months ago Israelis and Palestinians began trying to blow each other up.
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But history, oh baby, history will help you understand those events.
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And come to conclusions about what ought to be done.
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And the thing is, we know this by instinct.
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Like when you first meet a person, supposing you have some time with them.
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The first thing you want to know is, like, what's your story?
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Where did you grow up and how is that shaped you?
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And why do we ask those kinds of questions?
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It's because we know that everything that happened in a person's past has some bearing on who they are in the present.
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And if you don't understand their past.
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You certainly won't understand their present.
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In fact, the past is never really past because we as people and we as societies carry it with us.
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And it haunts us every moment of the present.
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So why do we study history in order to understand and navigate the present moment?
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Okay, reason number three, the study of history bestows virtue on its students.
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Mmm, that's a tasty one.
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So much sauce.
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If you submit yourself to the study of history, it will bestow at least two classical virtues upon you.
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Humility and love.
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And you're like, what, how does studying history make me more humble and loving?
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Well, let me explain it up real nice for you.
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First, the study of history bestows humility.
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And it was that mountain of a historian Sam Wineberg who taught me this.
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He says, the narcissist sees the world, both the past and the present, in his own image.
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Mature historical understanding teaches us to do the opposite.
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To go beyond our own image.
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To go beyond our brief life.
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Of the subjects in the secular curriculum, history is the best at teaching those virtues once reserved for theology.
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Humility in the face of our limited ability to know, and awe in the face of the expanse of history.
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Or to say it another way, the discipline of history teaches me that I am not the biggest deal that there is.
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And that, to put it more succinctly, is humility.
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And if you give yourself to this discipline, you will necessarily become more humble.
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Like if you let it do its work in you.
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And as I said before, we live in a world filled with ugly and misshapen pride.
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And what we need is more humility.
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And by entering this class, you stand on the threshold of such a virtue.
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Okay, the second virtue the study of history bestows is love.
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Now, all of us, I'm assuming, want to love this world and the people who belong to us better than we do.
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But to become one who loves well is no easy thing.
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But the study of history turns us into those kinds of people.
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Let me explain.
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For this idea, I'm indebted to historian John Fea.
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Who says, people in the past cannot defend themselves.
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They are at the mercy of the historian.
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This, of course, gives the practitioner of history a great deal of power.
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But historians must relinquish power and avoid the temptation to use the powerless to serve selfish ends.
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Such an act of compassion and love for those in the past requires imagination and an openness to listen before judging.
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Isn't that what we want for ourselves?
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Like, don't we want others not to rush to judgment about us?
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But to love us enough and hear us on our own terms.
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And aren't those the kinds of people that we want to be to others as well?
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Like, I've never met a judgmental person who was like really happy.
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But I have met plenty of people who have climbed into the foothills of love and compassion for their fellow human beings and abound with joy.
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And have begun to understand what it means to flourish as a human.
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So the study of history teaches us to love.
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Now, I know I've been soaring in the clouds here, but I've been trying to awaken your imaginations.
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And breathe life back into the dry bones of the study of history.
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And when you step foot in that classroom, you're going to be taking quizzes and tests and interpreting documents.
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And writing essays, and at every step, you're going to be tempted to believe.
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That the tasks you're completing have no larger significance in your life.
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But I will be here constantly to remind you of this.
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The study of history matters, and the world needs those who have been shaped by this discipline.
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All right, well, thanks for watching.
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If you're about to start AP World or AP US or AP Government.
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Then baby, you should probably subscribe.
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I got videos coming out multiple times a week to help you get an A in your class and a five on your exam in May.
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Links to all the books that I mentioned are in the description in case you're interested.
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I'm out.
Topics:history educationcritical thinkinghistorical empathyhumilitylovecomplexitypresent understandingAP historyhistorical analysisHeimler's History
