History Lesson

[Bazile]

What has history taught us ?

[Clanad]

Very little, apparently, since it's repeated invariably and incessantly...

[vetuste_ennemi]

History repeats itself - the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce.

[aelmpvw]

if you're having a dust up at hastings wear eye protectors

[vetuste_ennemi]

Perhaps the repetition of this piece of history ought not be described as farce.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKHt43DDars

[Khandro]

AND v_e; “That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons that history has to teach.”
― Aldous Huxley.

[Graham-W]

"History is more or less bunk." Henry Ford.

[Peter Pedant]

there is only one lesson from history and that is: there are no lessons from history

but I kinda like Aldous Huxley better.
the only I quoted is meant to Maurois or Mauriac but I cant find either

[sandyRoe]

That it's the winners who write histories?

[Noe-schitt]

That it can be manipulated

[jourdain2]

Since crystal balls are notoriously unreliable, the only way in which we can possibly foresee results of particular actions is to look at what happened when a particular set of circumstances was more-or-less replicated in the past. We should have learned that we should consult History when moving forward.

[jourdain2]

I should have added that History 'grounds' us. We learn where we and others come from, which should add to our understanding of each other. It also makes us appreciate the sacrifices made by earlier generations so that we are at the point we have reached today. E.g. the universal vote.

[ukbod2015]

At the moment its history comes back to haunt us.

[ladyalex]

I think that what I learned from school history lessons was how to cope with extended periods of boredom.
Quite interested in it now though...if it has moving pictures attached to it like Simon Schama's or David Sharkey's Tv programmes.
What has been learned from history? Very little I'd say.

[Mosaic]

History? It's just one effing thing after the other

- Rudge, in the Alan Bennet's 'The History Boys'

[jennyjoan]

Lord I hated History in school - cos I wasn't interested in it couldn't grasp it - still loathe it. I have a friend at the moment loves going on geneology sites - she'll tell me I'll find out where your great granny came from - no thanks says I not one bit interested - a good future is all I am interested in LOL

[Khandro]

and finally ? this morning's quote for the day just received;


"There's nothing new under the sun, but there are lots of old things we don't know."
Ambrose Bierce (1842-1914)

[Peter Pedant]

from an intellectual point of view
Marc Bloch The historians craft is recommended

answers the q ' what do historians do all day ? '

[Khandro]

PP; Dunno, but I Googled it and got, as a career; "A career as a Historian is a real job, but it’s also a rare job, which is probably why you have never met one. And if you know anybody who is studying to be a historian, there is a good chance they are either in grad school or planning to do graduate work. There are thousands of historians at work in the world today (according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number in 2012 was 3,800), but if you think about it, in the grand scheme of things, that’s not a lot of people engaged in this field."

But I don't think that's the answer, so I give up.