My Philosophy of History

                Part of my philosophy of history is that the purpose of studying history is to learn from the past. I would argue that the tendency for the historian to focus on the importance of knowing facts and dates is a detriment to the study of history. Too often the historian makes the focus of history the memorizing facts and dates and who was who, often getting caught up in the minutiae of history. There is nothing wrong with facts, dates, and knowing who historical figures are, the issue is when a historian makes knowing facts about the past the purpose of studying history. In my view, the importance of history is in learning from the past, not simply learning about it. I see very little point in studying the past for the sake of knowing the past; there is no practicality in that. Studying the past for the sake of itself can be very enjoyable of course, but it should not be the historian's priority. I see the importance of history in the lessons that can be learned from it. The events, ideas, and people of the past can have valuable lessons for the current day.

                Another aspect of my philosophy of history is that history is in a way the story of mankind. It is important to remember that history is about real people and real events. When learning about history and evaluating, it is important for historians to be careful not to judge the people of history too harshly.  Historical figures were real people who made mistakes, so it is important to be objective when studying them. This is not to say that were not evil or good people in history, but it is essential for the historian not to idolize or demonize them.