Who Is To Blame To Correct Hamilton?

1724 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Cultural and historical relativism

George Santayana once said “Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it”. Recently I had the opportunity to watch the hit musical Hamilton. After I got home, I raved about the show to my twenty year old, Oregon State biology major boyfriend, elated by the historical accuracy of the musical. I noticed, however, my boyfriend’s puzzled expression as I ranted about some of the historical events, so I went ahead to ask him if he actually knew who Hamilton was and the response I received was “some guy”. Feeling surprised, I subsequently asked him if he knew what the revolutionary war was and who were the two sides and he responded “uhmmmm…. The north and the south?” Now I am not claiming that my boyfriend is doomed for his lack of historical knowledge; however, he was never taught an actual course on American history. Because of his inadequate education in history, he has grown to loathe everything about it. Unfortunately, my boyfriend is one of many students that …show more content…

To specify, monuments of historical figures who were in favor of slavery are in jeopardy of irreparable destruction. To put the above issue into perspective based on the warrants given in favor of historical significance: if someone were to erect a monument of a historical figure who supported such unethical morals today, there would inevitably be reasonable grounds to demolish such a statue. Even so, these monuments that activists want to destroy are a part of our history and it has been aforementioned that we have changed and grown as a society since those historical figures lived and these monuments were built. The morals that date back to these historical figures’ times on earth are much different than our general societal morals today. We need to recognize our history even if it means leaving a monument we disagree with

Show More
Related

  • The Name Of War, Jill Lepore

    869 Words  | 2 Pages

    Our history books continue to present our country's story in conventional patriotic terms. America being settled by courageous, white colonists who tamed a wilderness and the savages in it. With very few exceptions our society depicts these people who actually first discovered America and without whose help the colonists would not have survived, as immoral, despicable savages who needed to be removed by killing and shipping out of the country into slavery. In her book, The Name of War: King Philip's War and the Origins of American Identity, Jill Lepore tells us there was another side to the story of King Philip’s War. She goes beyond the actual effects of the war to discuss how language, literacy, and privilege have had lasting effects on the legacy that followed it.

    Read More

  • Comparing The American Revolution and The American Civil War

    844 Words  | 2 Pages

    As we study American history we see that the saying, 'History repeats itself' reveals much truth. As we look closer at the American Revolution and the American Civil War, we can find many similarities between the two. Another saying that is made known is that 'We learn from our mistakes,'; but even the greatest men and women of our history did not follow. The main causes for both wars were the fight for liberty. If we are to analyze this issue in both wars, we see that the conclusion of one war leads to the beginning of another. As Semisonic sings, 'Every new beginning comes from some other beginnings end.';

    Read More

  • "The New View of Reconstruction"

    315 Words  | 1 Pages

    People attending schools before 1960’s were learning about certain “unscrupulous carpetbaggers”, “traitorous scalawags”, and the “Radical Republicans”(223). According to the historians before the event of 1960’s revision, these people are the reason that the “white community of South banded together to overthrow these “black” governments and restore home rule”(223). While this might have been true if it was not for the fact that the “carpetbaggers were former Union soldiers”, “Scalawags… emerged as “Old Line” Whig Unionists”(227). Eric Foner wrote the lines in his thesis “The New View of Reconstruction” to show us how completely of target the historians before the 1960’s revision were in their beliefs.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis Of Statue By John Daniel Davidson

    263 Words  | 1 Pages

    In this article, John Daniel Davidson explains that tearing down the statues is wrong. John Davidson asserts the audience that, “the reason for keeping them has nothing to do with honoring the cause of the Confederacy or the memory of slavery. Even though many of them were erected for that purpose in the decades spanning the 1870s to the 1930s, that should not be our purpose for keeping them now” (Davidson). He reminds us that the real reason on why they should be kept is not for praising slavery or confederacy, but for preserving history. Davidson then gives an example of how the statues should be viewed and acknowledged, he says suggestively, “Something as central to American history as the war between North and South should impose on us

    Read More

  • The Shortcomings Of Alexander Hamilton

    800 Words  | 2 Pages

    “If you stand for nothing, Burr, what will you fall for?” Lin-Manuel Miranda raps at the beginning of his hit musical, Hamilton. This sentence truly epitomizes the ideal that governed Alexander Hamilton’s life; that is to say that he was always a weighty advocate for the things in which he believed. His accomplishments range from orchestrating the Bank of New York to being a delegate for the Continental Congress, proving him to be a well rounded Founding Father. Nonetheless many would like to discredit Hamilton because he, like all human beings, had significant flaws; he had an affair, he had trouble keeping his head, and many other countless flaws. However, does not every human being have a multitude of shortcomings? From the perspective of

    Read More

  • An Analysis Of James Loewen's 'Lies My Teacher Told Me'

    1024 Words  | 3 Pages

    James Loewen, author of Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything your American Text Book Got Wrong, wrote about the grim nature of the American educational system. Loewen spent a couple of years gathering intimate details about twelve American history textbooks. In his search, he found convoluted truths of what it means to be a patriot, and worst of all, the misrepresentation of the truth in the educational system. We must think about why a government would want to mislead its people, like in the case of the 1954 Iranian Coup orchestrated by the CIA. Perhaps it is comfort in knowing that all of the conflicts we’ve been involved in are reasonably sound, to remove our abilities to think critically, or to rightfully be proud of a bloody

    Read More

  • Essay On Confederate Statues

    658 Words  | 2 Pages

    Taking the statues down is like ignoring standing up for what you believe in and death by war. A quote from “Monumental Battle” states, “‘But many of those who support keeping the monument say their motive are about honor not race.’” This quote shows that not all who support the statues agree with slavery. Some don’t want them to come down because it’s honoring all who fought for what they believe. Others might argue that even though those people lost their lives for what they believe in, slaves lost their lives from working to hard or starvation. I would argue against that by saying, in school students are taught to stand up for what they believe in, if we take the statues down that’s saying don’t stand up for what you believe in; if you do, nothing comes from it. In other words, if we are able to take down statues of people who stand up for what they believe in, then that’s like taking down a statue of Lincoln, He stood up for what he believed in, no slavery; just like, for example, General Robert E. Lee, stood for

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay About Slavery

    1118 Words  | 3 Pages

    “We hold these truths to be self evident; that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” If the confusion has not yet set in, then give it a moment. This nation, the United States of America, prides itself on being far superior to all other nations because here in America we are free men. We set ourselves on a pedestal above Great Britain because the Declaration of Independence clearly states that everyone inside the parameters of our country will be treated as equal as the same individuals neighbor. Yet for nearly three centuries, our nation was full of individuals, including our forefathers, who “owned” people that were regarded as less than themselves simply due to the fact that the pigments in their skin did not allow them to fall within the Caucasian race. The very legal document that had the word “Independence” written within it’s name and blatantly stated that it is obvious that no human is greater than any other because we were all made by the same god for the same reason, is the foundation of a nation that used innocent lives as fuel for slavery. It wasn’t until some educated individuals finally stood up and realized how incredibly wrong these two concepts are when put together. It is said that when the former slave Frederick Douglass

    Read More

  • Failing to educate: social class

    731 Words  | 2 Pages

    If people’s mistakes and, reasons causing said mistakes in history aren’t portrayed completely for educational purposes then is history doomed to eventually repeat itself? The lower class is growing, middle class is shrinking and the upper class is making more money, which has been a pattern over the time frame the America’s existence. “Land of Opportunity” and “Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong”, both written by James W. Loewen contain brilliant insight to why some textbooks may be feeding students not necessarily false information but information irrelevant to the real issues most Americans face every day like unfair living conditions and opportunities due to social class. Mistakes, such as unfair distribution of wealth somewhat due to moving jobs overseas, make it hard for one to move up in ranks regarding social class. The social class issue in America goes much deeper than a deteriorating economy because, like Loewen says “opportunity is not equal in America”, which tends to be true due to factors like race, community, pay checks, and even inherent wealth of ones’ parents.

    Read More

  • African americans in world war I

    1996 Words  | 4 Pages

    American History not as a mere nuisance, or an inferior being portrayed by racism but as an Honorable soldier whom endeavors to protect a country he loves despite discrimination received at home or abroad.

    Read More

  • Analysis in James W. Loewen´s Lies My Teacher Told Me

    1210 Words  | 3 Pages

    “High school students hate history.”(pg.12) Even though in the end, that is the class they have the easiest time passing. Studies have showed that the more history classes that students take the less that they learn. They become “more stupid” about history.(pg.12) “African American, Native American, and Latino stu...

    Read More

  • Lies My Teacher Told Me

    898 Words  | 2 Pages

    Loewen, James W. Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2007. Print.

    Read More

  • Lies My Teacher Told Me by James Loewen

    1436 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...ime of the author rather then accurate historical facts. (Lies?293) Textbooks are being written this way and history is being taught this way to show people how they should act and strive to be. This relays to the student what is deemed acceptable to everyone and what is not. When it comes to a student remembering historical lessons they normally do not remember what is being taught to them unless they are moved by it. (Lies?301) So what is the result to a society where our students are being taught this way? The number one result is that students do not know the true history of their country nor do they remember what they were taught in class. This is a sad conclusion but Mr. Loewen feels it is an accurate one given responses to questions he has asked his students throughout the years. What can we do to change this and reeducate the people out there? Sadly I feel nothing can be done for those of us out there who are not truly aware of this misinformed way of teaching. But, our children need not be sheltered from our true history, rather they should learn all that has happened so we can prevent the atrocities from reoccurring again.

    Read More

  • Cave Of Ignorance In Plato's Allegory Of The Cave

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    “To them, I said, the truth would be literally nothing but the shadows of the images.”(Plato,657) We are “educated” by school about the facts that they want to tell us. In history books, we are told who the heroes and the villains are based on the authors of the book. But do we really know if the author’s perspective is the truth? Many people will settle with the facts they are getting without any efforts to question. Even exam questions are more on the author’s point of view than the student’s perspective. Intelligent people will read another author’s perspective and compare it with each other to get a new

    Read More

  • ten commandments

    488 Words  | 1 Pages

    I‘m not saying that this monument should be taken away and destroyed, I‘m saying that these people who want it on display should spend less time protesting and more time raising money to have a place built for their precious monument.

    Read More

More about Who Is To Blame To Correct Hamilton?

Open Document