We are now live in the present; we worry and make plans for the future. So why do we have to learn about the past in boring History classes? Many people, including me, had that question haunting our minds. However, that was before I read Cicero’s, a famous philosopher, famous quote: "To remain ignorant of things that happened before you were born is to remain a child ". History brings numerous benefits to us everyday, but mostly it helps us understand changes and avoid repeating mistakes that our predecessors have made.
According to Darwin’s theory of evolution, mankind was originally apes. After thousands of years, the apes evolved into what we call “cavemen”. These cavemen lived in shelters built from rocks and stones and found food mostly by hunting and gathering. Then step by step, they turned into the modern people that are living all over the world. After all, I gave such a detailed example just for you to see that, without the studying of fossils, bone structures, remnants of the lost cities, etc. We human can never find out who we were and how our society became such a civilized one. Moreover, studying the past helps us shape the future that we are aiming at, for “he who controls the past, controls the present”- quoted George Owell.
Lily Tomlin once said: "Maybe if people paid attention to it, history would stop repeating itself". Before you decide to do something, you should consider history as an inexhaustible source of reference. History provides many examples, both successful and failed ones. Therefore, you will regret if you do not take your time and study the past carefully, because you will make even the stupidest mistake that some in the past has made. Take the Mongolians as an example. They invade our country three times in a row, and all three times they fell for the same old trick. What they found were just empty villages. Having no food to eat, their fierce army soon died from hunger. There were even a joke that: “ If Mongolians have studied history more carefully, Vietnam will be their territory now”.
So, what will be the effect if children do not learn history? They will not know where they came from, how did the world became what it is now and the reason of other changes. Furthermore, they will keep making mistakes since they cannot learn anything from their ancestors. Last but not least, they will not appreciate what they have now. For instance, they will not know that to have a bowl of fresh rice, many scientist had to make several researches to look for the most nutritious, easy-to-grow crops. In general, our descendants will take for granted what they have now.
To conclude, studying the past is not a waste of time after all. It is a interesting thing to learn and to discover if you have the right method. Contrasting with what most people believe, history contributes to understanding changes over time and prevent us from repeating the mistakes that some of our predecessors have made.
