Why Study History?

I certainly agree with the AHA’s article in that studying history certainly helps students hone their research, analytical, writing, and presentation skills. In this, the skills that the discipline demands are readily applicable to any other subject and any career.

I also believe that studying history is extremely valuable in cultivating civic skills as historical study encourages individuals to consider multiple perspectives in their analysis of factual events. I have found that knowing history also informs my understanding of contemporary events (i.e.: understanding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine can be informed by the history of the Cold War, World War II, World War I, and the Russian Empire) as common themes remain consistent in history stretching back millennia. I am a big fan of the quote often attributed to Mark Twain that, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes.” Technology, politics, economics, society, values, and even the natural environment may change, but basic human nature is a historical constant (one could certainly argue that the same emotions that drive Donald Trump also drove Charles Lindbergh).

In a more personal sense, a historian may go through life as a botanist walks through a garden. The knowledge that the botanist has about the various complexities of plant life makes him appreciate the plants in his understanding of them. As a historian walks through his life, he can appreciate the world for what it is through his comprehension of historical events.