Over the course of my life, some of my more skeptical friends have questioned the value and relevance of history. "There is no past, there is no future, there is only now," said one, while others go to a showing of the new Steven Spielberg movie, "Lincoln," and view it as pure entertainment with no understanding of its connection to the events that took place a century and a half ago.
After a career in government and a longer fascination with the past, I can forgive those who would ignore the past in the course of their busy lives, even if I can not escape it. I think our educational system has done a poor job of showing the importance of history to the students entrusted to its care, just as many historians have done a poor job of telling the story in a way that resonates with the population.
It is not the past that is uninteresting; the popularity of the work of filmmaker Ken Burns, the historian Stephen Ambrose and various HBO docudramas proves that the story of our past can be told in interesting and enlightening ways. The lack of interest has more to do in the way the American tale is told. Americans are disconnected and unmindful of their national story, because often those who try to tell it are engaged more in a private dialogue with each other than one designed and measured to inform.
The most successful purveyors of history are those who recognize that history belongs to the people — the same people whose ancestors lived it and the same people who are living it today. The story of our past can be interesting and informative, if that central fact serves to guide the story telling. When a historian, filmmaker, or author is able to embed the story of the past into a common understanding, we are able to not only appreciate the story of the past, but of ourselves.
Burns' recent PBS documentary on the Dust Bowl, for example, is important not because of the grim chronology that it presented, but rather, because of the personal stories that it preserved. Burns used the words and voices of those who lived the story of the Dust Bowl, because that is what makes the story more compelling, interesting and relatable. History lives in the voices of those who lived it and witnessed it; our connection is stronger because of that link.
After more than 35 years of studying the past, I have never quite believed in the adage that "those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it." It is a rhetorical flourish that has been invoked many times over the years, but history seldom exactly repeats and there is no foolproof formula to predicting outcomes based on the historical past. Still, I have always believed that as a population we are better citizens and a better people if we understand where we have come from, how we have traveled the path and where we have ended our journey.
Good leaders are informed leaders, and we are a better people if we come to terms with and understand our own victories and failings as a nation. Our arrogance should be tempered by our appreciation of the darker chapters of American history, just as our spirits should be lifted by the moments when our nation has truly been a beacon for the world. We should take pride in our legacy and use every moment as instruction in how we might do better.
I recently spent some time with the British-born historian Alex Kershaw, who remarked that the American participation in World War II was one of the most altruistic moments in the history of the world. He reminded that the United States began ground fighting in Europe in 1943 and continued its great sacrifice of men and materiel even when the defeat of Hitler was clear. Kershaw concluded that America did not fight World War II for its own preservation, but rather, for the liberation of Europe, creating a debt that he believes Europe still owes the U.S.
It is important to know and think of such things; to reflect on our nation's greatest moments and be instructed by our worst. There is power in knowing the past.
There are some leaders whom have recognized that dichotomy. Abraham Lincoln was a self-taught student of history who appreciated the forces of the past as well as the ability to harness that energy toward better purpose. Lincoln claimed "not to have controlled events but to have been controlled by them" but that seems more a coy understatement by Lincoln than a true expression of belief.
So, too, Martin Luther King, Jr. was a leader who, in understanding the past and the force of history, used that power to move this country toward a different, better place. We are in need of such leaders today — dedicated and informed men and women who understand where we have been and are endeavoring to move us forward as a nation based on that understanding.
The past is never too far removed from where we stand. The study of history does not reveal all, but examples abound in helping to guide the path forward.
Our nation is facing some very difficult challenges, but history tells a tale of how such problems have been overcome before. The past is haunted by the ghosts of those who have struggled and met the challenges of their times: Washington, who refused a throne and built a nation; Lincoln, who used Civil War to advance the cause of freedom; and Franklin D. Roosevelt, who ended the Great Depression and secured victory over world tyranny.
There are countless others who have suffered and sacrificed during hard times. They are part of the story of our collective past, a story that waits patiently to instruct and inform.
Bill Howard lives in Delmar. He recently published "The Civil War Memoir of William T. Levey."