“Books are the steps towards human progress”. Following standard rhetoric like this, people nowadays would be easily lured into the belief that the formation and circulation of literacy was the result of nature development—a normative and inevitable route of the progress of human society, an official and more efficient way for the transmission of knowledge.Nonetheless, as we examine closely to the history all the way back to the period before the wide broadcast of writing, we are able to see that the writing at its first stage was merely aimed to strengthen the state’s rule as well to build the virtuous images of the state instead of functioning as a major channel of knowledge transmission. More than that, literacy in some circumstances even functioned the role as state formation and creation. Historians, as we normally perceive bear the responsibility as scholars who record and research about past events and compiled them together in order to benefit the future generations as an authoritative channel for them to understand and study the past of human kind. Nevertheless, these missions were hardly the main …show more content…
In the chapter “Sima Qian: The Sacred Duty of the Historian”, Sima Qian’s father Sima Tan, who was also a court historian serving the Western Han warned him that the main missions for a son was to carry on the deeds that his father and ancestors had been doing for centuries, which is to continue working as a court historian; he also stressed on the point that Sima Qian, as a virtuous son should fully obey the rule of his sovereign, as it is the right thing to do according to the concepts filial piety. Thus, the book of Shijji can be largely sensed as a filial behavior towards his parents, his sovereignty, and more importantly, the interests of the state of
Instead of diving straight into a depiction of the hellish existence that is an illiterate lifestyle, Kozol quotes Founding Father James Madison, saying that “A people who mean to be their own governors… must arm themselves with the power knowledge gives. A popular government without popular information or the means of acquiring it, is but a prologue to a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both” (Madison 114). A country under the rule by the people who can’t go as far to even rule the information presented to themselves seems much more Anarchic than Democratic. By quoting James Madison, Kozol presents his idea that education in the written word is integral to the foundations of a prosperous and free society, and that this was even recognized by the Founding Fathers. Following his assertion that literacy is key to an effective Democracy wherein policy and leaders are elected by an educated populace, Kozol gives a depiction of a Democracy wherein herd mentality is
The importance of our world's history is huge, because it teaches us about our past and how we came to be in the world we live in today. History can help you learn about our ancestor’s origins and cultures.
Historians produce knowledge for us to learn from in the form of written documentation showing what people have done in the
Historians believe they need to find the truth. They make arguments, write papers, and give lecture on what they are saying is the truth. Historians want to learn what happened. This is important, because history teaches many lessons. Students of history agree or disagree with historian's arguments and what they say happened or what is the cause of some event.
Furthermore, the source materials for writing the book were found in the dynasty. Evidently, in the era of Sima Qian, the Shiji provided a ground for the to-come dynastic histories. However it varies from them in many ways. It is characterized with a long time span and similar attempts to incorporate the whole mortal history was rare among later Chinese historians. Also, the source material was too varied. Qian’s father was supposed to complete writing the definitive history of the Chinese past, a feat that he did not finish. The same was later completed by Sima
Some would say society around the world as a whole has evolved into a self-serving society. Through teaching the historical events of the ancestors this may help curtail the negative attitude that is running rampant today. It is vitality important that we have scholars who will continue researching and documenting history.
Shi Huangdi had a strong belief in legalism, which led to harsh rule that has been critiqued among history experts throughout the ages. Shi Huangdi’s philosophies set him apart from most rulers and led to much hatred and criticism, but they also paved the way for China’s golden age. “Although his methods
With respect to these roles, it is the youth who primarily own history at any given time; they have an interest in a topic, then study to become well versed in it, then they teach it to the next youth. It is their interpretations that influence the popularity and importance that society finds in that theme of history.
History writing has evolved much over time with the contributions of many people. In the modern sense, it can be traced back to ancient Greece and China, where historians Herodotus and Sima Qian began keeping records of human existence. Although they were not literally the first people to write history, together they are named the first great historians of the Western world and the East because of their individual innovations and extensive work that has long affected history writing up until this day. There is much to debate when it comes to the greatness of these ancient historians, and although some believe they were both important and successful in what their works, The Histories and The Records of a Historian, accomplished, others
History is defined as the study of the science of humanity in the past. It's a broad subject that spans over countless people groups throughout the years that the world has been around. Even before the times we have written word history was still being made, and it is still extremely important. We tend to forget that in our average day to day lives we are still making history. That all over the globe everyone is taking part in what might be in a history book someday.
Literacy is a vital and cautionary form that instructs the monks and our contemporary world about man’s past, however, literacy, outside of the Leibowitz abbey, is viewed as uninteresting and inferior; furthermore, literacy is a danger that can support our own biases rather than truth. The
One can infer from the two given sources that there are two main figures: Confucius, a Zhou philosopher and Sima Qian, a Han Historian. Both of them had various depictions of the non-Chinese peoples in their respective eras. So, what are the points of comparison in which we can uncover the similarities and differences of these depictions? The essay will seek to answer the question by first discussing the different depictions of the non-Chinese peoples by both Confucius and Sima Qian based on the definition of the term “non-Chinese” and the extent of threats, the attitude towards the non-Chinese peoples, their strengths, and the idea of assimilation. The similarities will later be explored through the concept of archery and the concept of profit and individualism. Lastly, the degree of difference will be discussed in the concluding paragraph.
Nominate me as the one to work for as a historian, I’ll give you my word that I promise that I will fully cover all people and all subjects equally without favoritism, without criticism, and with complete objectivity and thoroughness.
Therefore, trusting the analysis and investigation performed will allow us to conclude this paper and contemplate as to whether religion, politics or socialness was the foundation of writing that lead to its immortality throughout the Ages.
What is History? This is the question posed by historian E.H. Carr in his study of historiography. Carr debates the ongoing argument which historians have challenged for years, on the possibility that history could be neutral. In his book he discusses the link between historical facts and the historians themselves. Carr argues that history cannot be objective or unbiased, as for it to become history, knowledge of the past has been processed by the historian through interpretation and evaluation. He argues that it is the necessary interpretations which mean personal biases whether intentional or not, define what we see as history. A main point of the chapter is that historians select the facts they think are significant which ultimately