Andy Wilson

The Uses and Misuses of History

History is the recording and interpretation of past events. It is a tool that helps us

as human beings understand ourselves and our place in the world. It tells us: who we are

by knowing who our forebears were, how to evaluate our actions by examining those of

the past and how to understand where we are by knowing where we came from. We

should view history not as a road map showing exactly where we are going, because

human nature is far too erratic for us to make any concrete visions for the future. Instead

we should take the past lessons that have been learned and examine them to see if they

have any bearing in our modern lives. We must study history and learn from its greatest

tragedies as well as triumphs.

As George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to

repeat it” but Hegel may have been more accurate when he observed that if history

teaches one thing it is that no one learns from history. As stated before history is not a

road map, it cannot show us exactly what we should do. Its greatest use is as a teacher; a

teacher with a cornucopia of different human experiences, or lessons, which should be

examined and possibly applied to our modern and future problems.

But history has not always taught man lessons; in fact it has been used as a

weapon for some of our most evil acts. Some men have twisted history to support their

own ideals or to further their desires. Other’s interpretations have, unbeknownst to the

author, caused widespread hardship and catastrophe for others. An example of the first
would be Hitler’s interpretation of history and the second would be Marx’s theory of

history.

Hitler’s theory of a master race came from a much distorted view of history. He

believed that the Aryan race, blonde haired blue eyed, where descendants of the survivors

of Atlantis. These supposed blonde, blue eyed survivors had left Atlantis and conquered

Northern India. Form this he believed that the blonde haired blue eyed people of the

world were superior to all of the others. For Hitler this belief justified the extermination

of the Jews and others he deemed unfit. History was distorted by Hitler and his

henchmen and used as a weapon against the Jews and any group that stood in his way.

Marx’s theory of history initial did not have the evil intentions that Hitler’s had,

but as other people interpreted its meaning in their own way, it took on a much more

sinister turn. Marx believed that history was founded not on ideas as Hegel believed but

instead on material things. As man advanced technologically his lot improved, but Marx

felt that until all men controlled the means of production they would not truly be free.

Marxism stayed as simply an idea until the Bolshevik revolution of 1917, when Lenin

and Trotsky’s communist forces seized power in Russia. They then put into motion one

of the bloodiest regimes the world has ever seen, all based on an interpretation of history.

History can be used for good as well as evil. It should always be used as a teacher

or a kind of guide who can give us past examples to help us make educated decisions.

But there will always be those who try and interpret history along their own lines and in

the end harness history’s power not for good but for evil. History is a vital human idea, it

will always tell us where we came from and help us get where we are going.