Winston Churchill,
former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and one the most important wartime
leaders of the 20th century, once said “History is written by the victors”.
This quote takes even more power if we connect it to George Orwell's ideas of
control expressed in the novel 1984 “He who controls the past controls the
future. He who controls the present controls the past.”
At first, it is
possible to wonder; are winning sides actually trying to explain why this event
happened? No, this is just propaganda, they are trying to control how the world
past events will be told in the future.
Due to their winning
position they will manipulate the events and information in order to gain
control over the past by telling as well as the future as this “Truth” or
“Facts” will go into history books and be taught to children in the future and
sadly for all of us, these lies will become an absolute “truth”
“History is a set of lies agreed upon.”
― Napoleon
There are many
examples of this in history, such as Cristobal Columbus’ real repercussions on
the American tribes, the American Civil War, World War I, etc.
Therefore my question
is: how many of the things we take for granted are nothing but a bunch of lies
created and used to control us?
Furthermore, George
Orwell in his essay “Historical Truth” (1944) argues that the liberal habit of
mind which sees truth as something to be discovered is the only hope we have
for the future. Because of this it has become extremely important to motivate
this “liberal habit of mind” due to the constant manipulated information we are
being fed by mass media and propagandas.
So, I encourage you
to think of all the things you give for certain and find more information about
those topics. I am sure that the way you see the world will change.
References:
Orwell, George. Historical
Truth (1944), Retrived, November 17, from: http://www.newspeakdictionary.com/go-history.html.
Orwell, George. Nineteen Eighty-four. London: Penguin
Books, 1954.
I think everything that we had been told as history facts are manufactured by the ones that won. As it is always said, there are always to sides of a story, and the same happens with history. However, now thanks to technologies, we have the opportunity to know every single angle of a historical situation. We can know, for instance that Thanksgiving is not what Americans want to believe it is or that our Fiestas Patrias have nothing to do with our independence from the Spanish Crown.
ResponderEliminarSo, yes. Most of what we know as our history is the interpretation of a only a few. Nevertheless, sometimes it is better to accept those interpretations and to move on. History is important, but the present is even more crucial. We need to make sure that the ones that are going to win are the ones creating better opportunities for our society.
I understand the importance of living in the present and not get stuck in the past. But, in my personal opinion, I believe that is extremely importance to be aware of the manipulation of history because in way or another it affects the present. For example, knowledge we have help us to take decision in the present, so if we have been deceive our decision might not be the best and it will also affect the future.
ResponderEliminarI do agree with you regarding the possibility that we know have to search for new information and see history from different views. However, it is important to motivate this habit of searching for more information as most people just accept what they are first presented even us as students then to do that.
It is true that history is told by the victors. And more than told, I think the word would be manipulated. And how could we blame them? Don't we do the same? Even when we tell stories about our personal life or experience, aren't we telling our side of the story? And if it is only our point of view....is it the truth?
ResponderEliminarI think that history is extremely important because it provides us with a broader picture of what has been happening. But if our knowledge of history is going to be given by only one side of the story, our future is condemned to be in constant disputes over who is right and who is wrong. So, we should be mature enough so as to not take a side that quickly and of course, try to know history, try to know truth, from every possible aspect.
This fact can even be seen in videogames since many of them only show the winner as the good one who is saving the world from an evil enemy that will destroy everything he or she finds on his way to control and rule it.
ResponderEliminarI think it is important for us to know both different perspectives from History so we can create a personal, informed and hopefully objective opinion regarding any event that happens, not only in relation to world or national History, but also in our daily life.