History Is More Than Facts

In school, especially high school, I hated history. All we really did was learn a sequence of events, dates, places, and names. Facts swam in my head with no understanding of what they really meant. What, exactly, was the point? I was never taught that.

I didn’t get a real appreciation for history until I got involved with the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) that recreates the Middle Ages. They don’t recreate specific events, but culture, arts & science, and something of an appreciation for the life style of the period. I discovered something amazing. History could be fun!

My interests wandered into different time periods and specific areas, but as I studied, I began to realize why history in schools is so boring and pointless. Far more important than the who and when is the why. Understanding why things happened and what the consequences were are the real lessons from history. Not understanding why is the reason it keeps repeating itself. We’ve all heard the statement, “Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” If all you have learned is who and when, you’ve learned nothing of value.

It is the circumstances surrounding any type of historic event that are mirrored over and over again. You can look in depth at similar events and find that very similar circumstances lead up to each event. Once you do that, it should be simple to see when the same set of circumstances are coming together again.

Gaining this insight has given a depth to my world building, and probably why I am anxious to get back to Sorth’s ancient history. In writing that set of circumstances, perhaps I can gain a better grasp on our own.