DOES HISTORY MATTER?
Whether it is important to dwell in the past is a question that has baffled humans for many millennia. Many great minds have attempted to answer this question. Maya Angelou, a famous American poet, is well known for her statement, “History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again” (Anderson & Span, 2016). Others believed that it was not important to wallow in the past. For instance, Thomas Jefferson believed that it was more important and beneficial for people to imagine the future than dedicate so much effort to remembering and recording historical events. One of his most well-known quotes is, “I like dreams of the future better than dreams of the past” (Washington, 2018). Subsequent paragraphs will attempt to answer this question by drawing inspiration from major historical issues both in the recent and distant past. I will discuss the contributions of Egyptians to science and mathematics, the deforestation of Brazil and its effects, and finally, with the cautionary tale of the Milgram experiment. An understanding of past events is indeed important if the human race intends to improve its condition over time, rather than to repeat past mistakes.
Ancient Egyptians have been credited with being one of the most advanced ancient civilizations in the world. They invented the decimal number system that we use today in calculations throughout the world (Woodworth, 2019). Ancient Egyptians also formulated many trigonometric equations that they employed in the design and construction of various monumental structures that were integral to their religion and culture. Scholars have found that Egyptians did not formulate all of these mathematical equations in order to grow theories and develop mathematical truths like most modern scientists do (Dick & Ogle, 2018). Instead, their equations were intended to be practical solutions for many mathematical and scientific problems encountered at the time. Many of the discoveries of ancient Egyptians continue to astound scientists because they are applicable today as they were millennia ago. One scholar suggests that the concept of developing mathematical and scientific theories that are so prevalent today was completely foreign to them. This points to a significant difference in terms of the approach to problems, with the adage “necessity is the mother of invention” holding. Just like modern scientists, however, the Egyptians developed these skills to meet the needs of the people arising from increased population growth, economic changes, and cultural needs (Cumo, 2017). From this comparison, we can deduce that societies today continue to face the challenges that were present in the past. It is, therefore, important to know how people before us faced these challenges in order to apply their ingenuity to our own challenges.
The impact of continued deforestation of the Amazon forest in Brazil has caused people to realize that what is done today may have lasting effects on the lives of future generations. Global warming has been a hot topic in recent decades, with many scientists agreeing that there is a gradual increase in global temperatures every year. They blame the temperature changes on increased greenhouse gas production from industries and the destruction of trees (Fearnside, 2019). Because Brazil is home to the largest natural forest on the planet, scientists believe that continued deforestation is causing an accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is one of the most significant greenhouse gases with the largest contribution to global warming (Palmieri, 2018). The destruction of the forest is directly attributed to human activity in the country. As the population of Brazil continues to grow, the government is tasked with making tough choices; provide food, land and economic growth for its people by encroaching into the natural forest or conserve the forest at the risk of stifling economic development and access to resources (Eduardo & Franchini, 2017). Society today has to live with the consequences of the actions of Brazilian people which run back many years ago. Many governments are concerned about the possible effects that global warming will have on the planet’s future. We can see the importance of history from this phenomenon. Past events do, indeed, have a direct influence on our lives today.
Milgram’s experiments do, however, show us a different perspective on the issue of history’s importance. In his famous experiment, Milgram intended to test the likelihood of people to obey instructions from an authority figure despite having personal reservations about what is being asked of them (Álexandre & David, 2017). He instructed them to ask a series of questions to a responder and deliver electric shocks to them if their responses were wrong. The results were surprising. Most people obeyed orders to inflict suffering on another person because they viewed the instructions as legitimate (Grzyb & Dolinski, 2017). Milgram’s experiment was inspired by the Nazi’s orchestration of the holocaust that resulted in the murder of millions of Jews in Europe. He wanted to find out whether Nazi supporters were only following orders (Russell, 2017). Through his experiments. Milgram was able to demonstrate that human nature, rather than historical factors, is responsible for the way people behave in various situations. Past events do have an impact on human behavior, but more primal human instincts are more relevant in predicting how a person would behave in a given scenario. Participants in the experiment were responding to authority because that is what they naturally do. This can be used as an argument to deemphasize the importance of historical implications.
An analysis of past events shows that there are different ways to consider the impact of people’s history on their current lives. Ancient Egyptians made discoveries that continue to be applied in the modern world. If the knowledge was lost, it is possible that humans would have found alternative solutions. However, it is still important to realize that the needs of people who came before us are similar to ours. We can utilize the solutions that they developed in order to meet our modern needs. We can analyze their shortcomings and modify our responses to manage better the challenges we encounter. It is also essential to realize that our actions will have lasting generations for future generations. As is the case with deforestation in Brazil, decisions made by people today have the potential to harm us today and into the future. Our role in the sustainability of the planet should be more apparent if we want to continue living on it. Milgram’s experiments, however, indicate that history does not hold all the power in determining our situational responses. Instead, other factors, like our inborn human tendencies, can play a huge role in the shaping of events, as occurred with the Nazis. In conclusion, history does matter. Understanding our history should empower us to create a better world.
References
Alexandre, L., and David, B., 2018. The logic of Submission and Commandment: From S. Milgram Experiment to The Slogan Power. Psicologia Clínica, 30(1), pp.61-80.
Anderson, J.D. and Span, C.M., 2016. History of Education in The News: The Legacy of Slavery, Racism, And Contemporary Black Activism On Campus. History of Education Quarterly, 56(4), pp.646-656.
Cumo, C., 2017. Mathematics in Ancient Egypt: A Contextual History by Annette Imhausen, pp.396-398
Dick, L.K., and Ogle, R., 2018. Think Like an Ancient Egyptian. Ohio Journal of School Mathematics, 80(1).
Eduardo, V., and Franchini, M., 2017. Brazil and Climate Change: Beyond The Amazon. Routledge.
Fearnside, P.M., 2019. Change in Brazil’s Amazon Region. Global Climate Change and Tropical Ecosystems, p.231.
Grzyb, T., and Dolinski, D., 2017. Beliefs about Obedience Levels in Studies Conducted within the Milgram Paradigm: Better than Average Effect and Comparisons of Typical Behaviors by Residents of Various Nations. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, p.1632.
Russell, N., 2017. An important Milgram-Holocaust Linkage: Formal Rationality. Canadian Journal of Sociology/Cahiers Canadiens de Sociologie, 42(3), pp.261-292.
Washington, H.A., 2018. The Writings of Thomas Jefferson (Vol. 7). BoD–Books on Demand.
Woodworth, J., 2019. Egyptian Expressions: Past and Present.