Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong

by James W. Loewen

Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong

published	September 3rd 1996 by Touchstone
binding	Paperback
isbn	0684818868 (isbn13: 9780684818863)
pages	384
literary awards	American Book Award
description	Americans have lost touch with their history, and in this thought-provoking book, Professor James Loewen shows why. After surveying twelve leading hig...more [close] Americans have lost touch with their history, and in this thought-provoking book, Professor James Loewen shows why. After surveying twelve leading high school American history texts, he has concluded that not one does a decent job of making history interesting or memorable. Marred by an embarrassing combination of blind patriotism, mindless optimism, sheer misinformation, and outright lies, these books omit almost all the ambiguity, passion, conflict, and drama from our past. In ten powerful chapters, Loewen reveals that: -The United States dropped three times as many tons of explosives in Vietman as it dropped in all theaters of World War II, including Hiroshima and Nagasaki -Ponce de Leon went to Florida mainly to capture Native Americans as slaves for Hispaniola, not to find the mythical fountain of youth -Woodrow Wilson, known as a progressive leader, was in fact a white supremacist who personally vetoed a clause on racial equality in the Covenant of the League of Nations -The first colony to legalize slavery was not Virginia but Massachusetts From the truth about Columbus's historic voyages to an honest evaluation of our national leaders, Loewen revives our history, restoring to it the vitality and relevance it truly possesses. [close]
date added	03-09-07 edit book

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Chak

Chak rated it:

07/03/08

Read in July, 2008

recommended to Chak by: Jennifer Dikes
recommends it for: Parents, educators, students who are bored by history

This is an important book, and I don't think I'm going too far by saying every American should read it. Children (up to and including high school students) are not only taught history poorly, but they are taught lies. The good news is that personally, I feel much better now about not remembering a damn thing from history class. The bad news is that the problems that arise from this particular corruption of education are deep and far reaching very negatively impact the lives of its victims. ...more

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Chris

Chris rated it:

02/09/08

bookshelves: history

Read in May, 2006

Why does nobody like high school history? Or civics, or social studies, or whatever they're calling it these days. Why does pretty much everybody hate this class? I mean, you have people who can memorize irrelevant sporting statistics for the last fifty years, but they can't name more than two nineteenth-century presidents.

The author of this book, a teacher and researcher of history, started looking into this. He'd found among his high school and college students an appalling level of ignora...more Why does nobody like high school history? Or civics, or social studies, or whatever they're calling it these days. Why does pretty much everybody hate this class? I mean, you have people who can memorize irrelevant sporting statistics for the last fifty years, but they can't name more than two nineteenth-century presidents.

The author of this book, a teacher and researcher of history, started looking into this. He'd found among his high school and college students an appalling level of ignorance in basic American history. So, he decided to try and figure out what went wrong and why.

His conclusion? Textbooks. The textbooks that we use in American history classes are simplistic, dry and patronizing, aimed not at teaching the students about the rich epic that is American history, but rather at reinforcing what they already believe to be true: America is a great place, and it's just getting greater.

Loewen has a lot of bones to pick with the history texts, but he limits himself here to ten. He looks at things like heroification, social biases, omission of the underclass and so on. With twelve common texts to draw upon, he tries to see what they omit and what they include, and he is shocked and appalled.

The primary sin of American history textbooks, he believes, is a lack of conflict. They present our history as a series of semi-benign events that all turned out okay in the end. These were not things that we (the government, a president, society) did, they were things that just happened. There is no causality, no emotion, no contradiction. Nothing ever leads to anything else, and none of it certainly is reflected in modern times. And so what is left is a bright-eyed, doped up view of America, where everything is just fine, and whatever may happen in the future, we'll get through that as well.

His position is that if we could teach history properly, as a continuum that affects us even now, it would be more interesting. If we showed the contradictions and the unpleasantness, we could teach students to think critically and, in turn, be better citizens. The cynic in me, of course, immediately thinks, "Well, no one wants that!"

He does try to offer solutions, things that a good textbook should do - focus on fewer topics, offer a broader view, and force students to work outside the text, for example - but he also acknowledges that it's not nearly as easy as it sounds. One of the reasons why history texts have to be so bland and inoffensive is because they have to be. If the subject matter is too controversial, the economic implications could be catastrophic. Too much focus on Black achievement during the Reconstruction? Southern schools won't buy your book. Not enough focus on the achievements of women? Say hello to NOW, you'll be hearing from them a lot. For every page and every paragraph, there's some parent, teacher, administrator, student, or just plan nutjob who might take offense, and so the solution is to be as inoffensive as possible. And in a country where people get very offended very quickly, I can see how textbook publishers might find it easier just to give up and put out the same crap edition after edition.

It's a tough problem to solve, and Loewen admits that he doesn't really have the solution. All he can really do is shine a light on the problem, and hope that we can figure it out. Because history is essential to knowing what to do with the future of America. And, of course, the rest of the world.......less

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Jim

Jim rated it:

01/30/08

Read in January, 2008

This was a great book! The first two-thirds gives example after example of the many lies, omissions, and half-truths found in American high school history books, and the last third speculates why this has happened. Here's one example:

Almost everyone knew the world was round before 1492. Columbus's main reason for traveling to the new world to find gold, and he was responsible for killing, torturing and enslaving natives by the millions. Eight million in Haiti alone were reduced to 200 wi...more This was a great book! The first two-thirds gives example after example of the many lies, omissions, and half-truths found in American high school history books, and the last third speculates why this has happened. Here's one example:

Almost everyone knew the world was round before 1492. Columbus's main reason for traveling to the new world to find gold, and he was responsible for killing, torturing and enslaving natives by the millions. Eight million in Haiti alone were reduced to 200 within 60 years - now seen as history's first documented genocide. Columbus practically invented genocide.

The new world was not populated by sparsely-scattered tribes, but by as many as 100 million Indians, which were systematically wiped out by one plague after another, most introduced purposely. Columbus's role in setting up the system is never mentioned. Indians were hunted for sport, murdered for dog food, and given to officers as sex slaves. Tributes in gold or cotton were due every 3 months, and Indians who did not comply had their hands chopped off.

The book goes on to discuss the invisibility of both racism and anti-racism in history books, and example after example of how history books white-wash our history, always making America look like the good guys, and never mentioning our mistakes.

The author would like to see history taught showing both sides of each event, and involve students in discussions of the pros and cons, which might make it more interesting to study.

Why is history taught this way? The author speculates that, although we strive for the truth in all other subjects, we purposely lie in history books, beasue we are trying to use history to build patriotism and a love of America in our children, and the truth might get in the way of that goal. We also want to shield our children from the harsh realities of the world, at least till they study history in college.

But most students never study history in college, and the facts go unlearned. I found much in this book that I never knew. Except for the controversy about teaching Evolution, history is the only subject whose content is dictated by parental groups and school boards.

This is a book that will make you stop and think like few others will....less

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1 comments

Maurean

Maurean rated it:

02/20/08

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in February, 2008

I originally picked this up several years ago because the blurb on the back cover appealed to me:

“Lies My Teacher Told Me” is for anyone who has ever fallen asleep in history class."

Mr. Loewen’s premise is that history textbooks have been presented to portray a slanted, optimistic and patriotic “dumbed-down” view of America, because this suits the needs of the conservative white people who sit on the textbook adoption boards. By critiquing 12 highly used American History t...more I originally picked this up several years ago because the blurb on the back cover appealed to me:

“Lies My Teacher Told Me” is for anyone who has ever fallen asleep in history class."

Mr. Loewen’s premise is that history textbooks have been presented to portray a slanted, optimistic and patriotic “dumbed-down” view of America, because this suits the needs of the conservative white people who sit on the textbook adoption boards. By critiquing 12 highly used American History textbooks, the author successfully presents several topics which they currently address, and uncovers the alleged omissions and distortions.

I completely agree with the author’s basic belief that American students are getting short-changed when we present only the PC-version of our country’s heritage, not to mention the fact that this watered down presentation only serves to bore them all to tears (students consider history to be “the most irrelevant” and “boring” of all the 21 subjects commonly taught in school). I, personally, was interested to learn that not one of the twelve textbooks described the geopolitical implications of Christopher Columbus’s encounter with the Americans; none mention that Columbus was the first to send slaves across the Atlantic. When we present our youth the world through rose-colored glasses, where no controversial subjects arise, it no doubt causes them to be ill prepared for the real world that exists beyond the classroom.

Having said all that, however, I found Loewen was overplaying the “politically correct” hand himself, replacing the conservative, Euro-centric rhetoric with his own overtly socialist and liberal leanings. His strong opinions on historical events may cause some readers to overlook his message on education. For this reader, it made for just the kind of boring recitation of skewed political propaganda the author claims to be rallying against. If you are interested in the topic of education and how it is being inseminated to our children through textbook censorship and abridgement of the facts, then I would recommend Diane Ratvitch’s “The Language Police: How Pressure Groups Restrict What Students Learn” for a more balanced examination of this issue. (clicking on the title will link you to a reader's journal/discussion of the book) ...less

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Dustin

Dustin rated it:

(review of isbn 0743296281)

03/07/08

Read in March, 2008

recommends it for: EVERYONE

What I learned from this textbook:

1. That it is not weird that I hated history/social studies in high school, but now find it interesting.

2. That textbook "authors" can't be bothered to do their own research, so all the textbooks tell the same apocryphal stories (George Washington and the cherry tree, the first Thanksgiving, Columbus as all-round good guy, the US as "international good-guy peacekeeper, with NO ulterior motives), making every factoid on every page suspect. ...more What I learned from this textbook:

1. That it is not weird that I hated history/social studies in high school, but now find it interesting.

2. That textbook "authors" can't be bothered to do their own research, so all the textbooks tell the same apocryphal stories (George Washington and the cherry tree, the first Thanksgiving, Columbus as all-round good guy, the US as "international good-guy peacekeeper, with NO ulterior motives), making every factoid on every page suspect.

3. That our history is far richer and more interesting than any one book (including this one) can possibly tell, so relying on a single book to teach a class like this is setting everyone, teacher and student alike, up for failure.

4. That while history is based on facts, the interpretation of those facts really does constantly change, and how we learn about them is based on previous societal changes. It is up to every student and teacher to separate fact from interpretation, and then to apply their own interpretation as needed. A discussion of slavery and Reconstruction written by a privileged European-American before the Civil Rights movement will not carry much water if read critically instead of just read to memorize the factoids for the test.

5. That our leaders have learned from the past and are applying its lessons to the present and the future:

"Of course the people do not want war....But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them that they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism." - German Field Marshall Hermann Goering, Nuremberg, April 18, 1946

Read this book, now. Then go out, and read more books, preferably primary and secondary sources, which tell the actual story, and include the controversies that still remain, both in ascribing motives to the people who made history, but also the controversies in interpreting what the facts actually mean, both for the present and the future....less

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Emily

Emily rated it:

04/07/07

bookshelves: history

Wonderful read for students of American History and sociologists. Loewen conducted a fabulous study of American History textbooks in the late 80s and early 90s. What he found was a narrative lacking much depth, diversity, and frankly, any excitement. He was right. Most texts still adhered to the "great white father's" narrative of American history that our parents and grandparents learned throughout the 20th century. Much of American history, from Columbus to Lincoln to Vietnam ...more

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Betsy

Betsy rated it:

05/29/07

bookshelves: history, non-fiction, trivia

Read in April, 2007

recommends it for: Teachers / Historical Trivia nerds / lovers of pop-history

Did you know Woodrow Wilson was a white supremacist and so disliked by the nation for getting into unneccesary wars that the next election had the largest margin of votes in US History (against the person Wilson was backing)? Or that the only reason Europeans were able to settle easily in America was because the entire coastal population had been wiped out by plagues brought over by fisherman years before? Europeans walked right into organized farms, complex irrigation systems, and land cleared...more

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Nate

Nate rated it:

11/05/07

bookshelves: history

Read in October, 2007

ummm...I loved this book.

Loewen's cases on why american history textbook editors feel they need to sugarcoat events from our past (Vasco de Gama's Fountain of Youth was actually a business venture for more slaves), the reasons certain truths are left out of student's lessons (Woodrow Wilson was a raging racist, having almost single handedly removing African Americans from the White House during his presidency) and the overtly biased slant in our textbooks toward European conquests (in 1492 ...more

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Sarah

Sarah rated it:

(review of isbn 0743296281)

01/07/08

bookshelves: political

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in January, 2008

recommends it for: Interested in U.S. history, race relations, and class issues?

This book was a captivating summary of what my high school American history class SHOULD have taught as well as what it probably did teach. It was a fascinating read, covering the truth and complexity behind America's less than glamorous past, and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in race issues, class struggles, and a fascinating treatment of historical struggles. My only real complaint is that the chapters aren't broken down into sections, which makes some of the transitions abrupt. ...more

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Greg

Greg rated it:

(review of isbn 156584100X)

02/22/07

Read in January, 2008

recommends it for: People who hate American history

This book explains why young people don't like history: Our textbooks are terrible and don't give us the full story about how America came to be. They don't want to teach us the truth. Instead, they try to build ideal citizens. Maybe textbook authors don't realize that character comes from experiences not myths....

This book is great for a person like me who loves true primary source history but doesn't like post-modernist categorizations of everything into identity discussions on race, c...more

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1 comments

Justin

Justin rated it:

01/20/08

bookshelves: historybooks

Lies My Teacher Told Me is a well-written and insightful expose of some of the problems inherent in the teaching of US History in public schools. From outdated textbooks to gross distortions of basic events and major figures, Loewen exposes readers to a side of US History that most do not get in high school. However, I had a problem with some of his methodology. His survey of 12 textbooks didn't seem like enough to make a truly damning critique of education in the country. In addition, his judgm...more

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k8lane

k8lane rated it:

01/23/08

Read in September, 2007

recommends it for: everyone, especially Americans

An excellent read -- the author surveyed 11th grade US History textbooks and the stories/myths/values they perpetuate about historical figures and American cultural identity. Incredibly thought provoking and interesting, if only to realize how much we are spoonfed about freedom and other hallmark ideals. For example, the story of Helen Keller focuses only on her achievements through young adulthood -- by consistently leaving out the controversy and political activism of her later years (things I...more

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Ginnie

Ginnie rated it:

05/31/08

bookshelves: history

This book shows that history is always more interesting than what you learned in school. When textbook gaffes make news, as with the tome that explained that the Korean War ended when Truman dropped the atom bomb, the expeditious remedy would be to fire the editor. Loewen would rather hire a new team of authors bent on the pursuit of context instead of factoids. In Loewen's ideal text, events and people illuminating the multicultural holy trinity of race, gender, and social class would predomina...more

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Louise

Louise rated it:

02/04/08

Read in February, 2008

recommends it for: history buffs

I picked up this book thinking it would just be a "regular" history book, focused on some areas of history that my public school education neglected, but instead I got a book that was not only full of interesting information, but included an interesting discussion on how history is taught in the US and its effect on our country. Some of the chapters weren't that surprising (Columbus massacred the Native Americans, the Pilgrams weren't tolerant of anyone but other strict Protestants, e...more

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Matthew

Matthew rated it:

02/10/08

bookshelves: non-fiction

Despite my enjoyment of historical information now, I never found any excitement in it during my K-12 years. Only after reading this book did I finally realize why: in their mad preparation to impart as much knowledge to children as they can, teachers in elementary schools and high schools opted to remove all controversy and uncertainty from history. Learning a list of the American Presidents is dusty and dull. Discovering that Wilson was an ardent racist, Columbus began a wave of vicious ge...more

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Cyndy

Cyndy rated it:

10/11/07

Read in January, 2007

recommends it for: neoconservatives - to light them up

great cocktail fodder.

i think the author has a great overall point. especially since my mom is navajo and was raised as a baby in tuba city, az. but c'mon. does anyone out there still believe the shite printed during the cold war anyway?

some of the examples in the book are pure sensationalistic crap. that's ok, it's no worse than the religious right's crap and in this case much more interesting and less mystical.

i find it just as hard to bite at each 'fact' given in this bo...more

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James

James rated it:

03/13/08

bookshelves: alternate-history, biography, character-studies, culture-and-politics, economics, history, reference

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in January, 1992

recommends it for: Anyone age 12 and up

A sort of traveling expose, debunking many of the instances in which history texts and classes have systematically censored history or twisted it into propaganda, both by telling lies and by leaving out significant events - putting image management ahead of honesty, apparently in the belief it is necessary to ensure students are properly patriotic. My daughter read parts of this book in junior high, and when she tried to share some of what she'd found out with one of her teachers, the teacher c...more

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Andrew

Andrew rated it:

(review of isbn 0743296281)

03/31/08

bookshelves: history

Read in March, 2008

recommends it for: History Buffs

This is a powerful attack on American history textbooks. The author hammers high school text book makers for falsehoods, overstating American's accomplishments, and shortchanging its sins. It is difficult to make a defense of American history textbooks and this book certainly has a good point.

The difficulty in reading this book is that is a very long list of negatives about the United States. While one can accept that the U.S. has not behaved well in many respects, it is equally untrue that...more

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Lisa

Lisa rated it:

07/10/07

Read in January, 2005

recommends it for: history lovers

GREAT title! Really makes you think about all those HS History Classes you sat through and wondered what they were leaving out of the discussion. For example: how come we never discussed Vietnam? History magically "ended" at WWII; we always assumed that it just coinsided with the end of the school year (oops - "no time" to discuss anything after! Have a good summer kids!). This book really explores how the top 10 American History Textbooks taught in 95% of American High Sc...more

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2 comments

Kyle

Kyle rated it:

06/21/08

Read in June, 2008

recommends it for: Every American

Loved this book! Some of the stuff in the book is "stuff everybody knows," as Dylan said, but some of it was new to me. For example, everyone knows that Columbus murdered and cut off the limbs of the natives, but a lot of the other exploration history was new to me. But the greater idea of the book -- why do history books omit facts and make up stories is very interesting. Also, the social issues that the book raises: racism, social status, etc. are quite interesting. Would you be...more

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book data (includes all editions)

avg rating (all editions): 4.05 (2233 ratings)
avg rating (this edition): 4.05 (1942 ratings)
number of reviews: 304

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