Do you believe the history we're taught?

Question

As in, all we can believe is when we're told. But what if the history we are told was created by a group of people that wanted us to believe it for their benefit?

Answer 1

it depends on where you live. each contry will tell history from its own point of view making themselves to be noble, strong and victorious and depictingeveryone else and weak, cruel and unfair.

an example of this is in the disagreements between britain and india. the british were depicted for being cruel and ruthless because they trapped a group of indians and opened fire. i think its known as the massacre of rajistan.

whats not told is that this was in revenge for an attack by a group of indians who barracaded a police station and set it on fire, burning the officers alive inside.

Answer 2

I don't know when History was first introduced as a subject for Study and by whom? It is obvious that some one or a group of people collected as many records available and compiled a story like narration which they believed to be true to those facts collected by them. In the process only the most famous names and incidents are linked. Secondly the compilers were always under the compulsion to portray the powers then as most benevolent and good in all respects. Their Enemies were portrayed as weak and unfit people etc.If we critically go into History we will always find many facts are missing or deliberately omitted or only mentioned in casual manner.
For example "the Doctrine of Lapse" of Dalhousie is mentioned as an achievement even to days History books and the protest against it as mutiny. The facts are totally different. Dalhousie played the game of Wolf and the lamb and the Lamb became the causality which is the truth.
Except for the last 3-4 hundred years seldom there is any record of at least the major incidents.
suppose we ask a historian when was the Universities of nalanda and takshasila founded and by whom.? what are the details of the curriculum taught there? he would not be able to answer.Who destroyed these universities is also vague.
This is the case about the history of any nation.
So i don't believe History as a complete subject or the incidents mentioned there are correct in the truest sense.

Answer 3

They say that history is written by the winners. There are ways to see for yourself when you're interested in learning the truth, though--you can look at several sources, and often you'll find evidence that what you are taught is not the full story. For example, Christopher Columbus was the first European to establish a permanent settlement in the Americas, but there is a great deal of evidence that Vikings got here before he did. They had settlements here, but they didn't stay. Also, most of Europe didn't know it, because many people of the time who met the Vikings didn't live to tell the tale.

Answer 4

Your History teacher should not be teaching you to belive the facts that he or she hands to you in lessons, they should be teaching you to scrutinise documentation and other evidence from the past so that you can make your own decisions about history.

Historians are aware that there can be biased accounts in history and they are trained to take this into consideration when studying different eras or subjects. Say for instance I wanted to study the impact of WWII on the civilian population of Europe. I wouldn't simply look at documentation or film footage from Britain just because they won the war and because I happen to be British. I would look at primary sources that were produced all over Europe including Germany!! I would have the works of eminent, unbiased Historians to direct me and ensure that I had an excellent background knowledge of my chosen research subject.

History hasn't been written by the winners in a long time and the type of Histpry taught today should certainly relflect this.

Answer 5

Mostly. History is always written by the victors, but a careful study can usually see holes where facts were left out. Some things are suppositions that became generally accepted, but concrete facts are true. JFK was indeed shot to death on 11/22/1963. The Japanese did indeed bomb Pearl Harbor on 12/7/1941. The Spanish Armada really did get defeated by weather in 1588. But many of the stories ABOUT those events are less than factual.

Answer 6

Very good question.
I have an example;
At school I was taught Admiral Francis drake heard of the coming of the Spanish Armada whilst playing bowls. "Armada? What armada?" were his words. Once the game was over, He jumped on his ship and kicked the Spanish armadas @ss.

The Spanish were taught differently. I lived in Spain for 4 years or so, and I always brought this up with the Spanish I knew well. They were taught that the armada left Spain with the intention of outnumbering and destroying the English. Before reaching the English Fleet, they ran into bad weather conditions and were destroyed.

NOW, someone isn't telling the truth here. Us? The Spanish? Who cares. We must be getting nationalistic history classes at school. We must.

I bet in America, the kids learn that they won in Korea and Vietnam, that the war in Iraq only lasted 3 weeks, and that they and they alone saved Europe in 1945 !

Answer 7

To be honest, you've got rather a narrow view of how History is taught nowadays - at least, the way it's taught in British schools. Far more emphasis is put on social history, and there's much more source analysis, and teaching about interpretation.

It isn't all about kings and queens any more (although that is important, of course).

Answer 8

Yes, if its written correctly with diligence due care and attention.
However it is true that History to certain extent is written by the
victor, but that does not necessarily mean its biased.
There is a danger that History on occasions is re-written, usual
this occurs in Films, Documentaries and Conspiracies and more often than not derives from unreliable sources which lack verification. So there is a compelling need to ensure authenticity
with credible unbiased research.

Answer 9

There was such a situation in my country - the history taught at school was all lies about the role of comunism etc. That was horrible. Not only facts were affected, but even other sciences - geography, philosophy, everything.
BUT! If some people are telling you that holocaust was made up - do not listen to them. And to those who talk about Polish camps - THIS is a lie!

Answer 10

As a former history teacher, I believe there is no conspiracy to promote false history. However, a lot of American history textbooks do lack in minority history. I also believe there are teachers who are not well read and just rehash what they were taught to their students. There are several books out there that fill in gaps such as Myths, Legends, and Lies of U.S. History, Lies My Teacher Told Me, and That Was Not in My History Book. They are great resources that help one get a more rounded history education.