preview

History Encompasses More Than Merely Events That Occurred

Decent Essays

History encompasses more than merely events that occurred in the past. History is about; understanding how people felt, how they lived and how certain events shaped the society they lived in. The truth is, today’s society only knows bits and pieces of history because most of the history that’s known is often misinterpreted, or misconstrued due to the lack of evidence that has survived, or the over-abundance of information that is present. Other times, history might be misinterpreted because historians try to “fill in the blanks” with information. For example, Christopher Columbus is heralded as the founder of North America; however, it has been proven that there were other explorers that discovered North America first; years before …show more content…

By reading the diary, you are essentially transported back in time; as though you were walking in that person’s shoes. Even though history is a very interesting area of study there are many different ways of interpreting it.
The problem with studying history is that it’s very hard to accurately say that things occurred a certain way. World War II ended yes, but who played the bigger role in its conclusion? Depending on where you are, people would answer the question differently. If you were Russian you would say the Russians played the bigger role in ending World War II, however, if you were an American, you might say otherwise. In all, history is only as accurate as the interpretation of the given evidence, and even then there might be misconceptions.
The epistemological fragility of history makes certain aspects of history hard to interpret and understand and therefore, it’s hard to put together a complete picture. An example of this phenomenon involves the massacre that occurred in Almo, Idaho in 1861. The massacre served as a collective identity for the people of the town because it was a reminder of the struggle that the settlers went through to ensure the survival of themselves, as well as their families. (Maybe add something here?) Oftentimes, people study history because they want to know where they came from. A collective

Get Access