Anonymous asked in Arts & HumanitiesHistory · 6 months ago

What is the point in studying history in school if history is written by winners and therefore hugely distorted?

History is not much different than bible.

12 Answers

  • 6 months ago
    Best answer

    Britain got a stupid system that, for something to be mandatory, it doesn't have to make sense for it to be mandatory. Most idiots follow without questioning.

  • 6 months ago

    History is written by historians who research all sides of a thing. It's way more factual than you portray.

  • Jeff
    Lv 6
    6 months ago

    The claim that history is written by the winners and distorted is idiotic, if that were the case the Vietnam War would be seen as a great victory for communism when in reality they had to essentially abandon communism and open their markets to a more capitalist based economy,

  • blu
    Lv 7
    6 months ago

    It's on a case by case basis. History gets recorded, people learn what it says and are entitled to their opinion. However, 'opinion only' can be a straw position.

    Much of history will be considered fact by enough people to be meaningful. Therefore, if you decide your 'opinion only' is your argument in court and the DA cites case law "facts", the judge will convict and sentence you ... probably more severely for your insolence.

    Anybody can say anything regardless of how absurd it is. It's up to you to decide if that's the company you want to be associated with.

    For the record, history remains pretty static until new "evidence" surfaces ... not old opinion.

  • Athena
    Lv 7
    6 months ago

    Your basic premise is wrong.

    With that your argument falls apart.

  • Anonymous
    6 months ago

    The Bible has actually provided extremely accurate historical accounts, as confirmed by archaeology- imperfect, but still much more accurate than most other ancient sources.

    Churchill started the cliche that "history is written by the victors," but the fact is that is patently false. There are instances when "victors" distorted history, the story of Cleopatra being a perfect example- despised by the Romans, who took control of Egypt, her biography was hopelessly distorted. This is what historians call "hostile sources."

    A HUGE example of deliberately distorting history are Holocaust Deniers; they are motivated by Anti-Semitism or some sort of brain damage.

  • 6 months ago

    One of the first 'histories' ever written was by the ancient Athenian Thucydides about the Peloponnesian War.

    Athens lost the Peloponnesian War.

  • 6 months ago

    The people in former Confederate states are taught a different version of the history of the Civil War era than in the former Union states and they lost. Americans are taught the history of the Vietnam War and they didn't win it. I don't know for sure but I bet people in England aren't taught the same history of the American Revolution as Americans. Those are just a few of many examples of the winner not writing the history.

  • Ludwig
    Lv 6
    6 months ago

    No, because if that were true, then the bible would also be not much different than history.

    Which is obvious bollox.

  • 6 months ago

    In the hope that some people will learn by their mistakes. The reason they haven't is that the winners write the history. So it takes people with a strong enough drive and the determination to sift through the lies.

    Most don't care - they're satisfied with the status quo. The rest of us are fighting an uphill battle to bring the truth to light.

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