首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Why bother with the study of history? What possible connections exist between an increasingly remote past and our own predicamen
Why bother with the study of history? What possible connections exist between an increasingly remote past and our own predicamen
admin
2012-01-19
43
问题
Why bother with the study of history? What possible connections exist between an increasingly remote past and our own predicaments (困境) in the present? Can stories about other peoples in other places at any other times have any meaning in an age of vaulting (飞速发展的) technology and traumatizing (惊人) change? Is it reasonable to think that anyone can benefit from the experiences of others in a presumably unprecedented (前所未有的) time when our political and economic systems falter (踉跄), and the nuclear, peril causes nightmares of dread? These questions hold more than rhetorical importance and compel serious answers. Undergraduates in all programs of study need to know what they can hope to learn and how their experiences will affect their capacity to think and act creatively in the future.
Skeptics have often argued that a knowledge of history will not provide much help. The American industrialist Henry Ford characterized history as "bunk". Although the observation probably tells more about the limitations of Ford’s mind that about the nature of history, other luminaries (名人) have expressed similar reservations. In the seventeenth century, the French scientist and mathematician Rene Descartes worried that undue curiosity about the past would result in excessive ignorance of the present. Another Frenchman, Francois Marie Arouet de Voltaire, a philosopher and historian, described history as "a pack of tricks we play on the dead". Although he meant the comment as an appeal for history written more accurately, he inadvertently gave support to the cynical claim that historians invariably fall into one of three camps: those as George Wilhelm Fried Rich Hegel, a nineteeth century German, feared that the only thing we can learn from history is that no one learns anything from history.
Undoubtedly the writing of history is a perilous (危险的) venture. A common lament among historians is the fact that every day requires them to face up to their incomprehension of the world and their incapacity to interpret their evidence correctly. Surely they should rank among the humblest of people. Nevertheless, for many, the sheer joy of the endeavor makes the risk worthwhile. Some even have assigned to themselves important and useful functions. Most historians regard the study of history as a way for human beings to acquire self knowledge. Edward Gibbon, the great English historian of the Roman Empire, sadly described the historical record as consisting of "the crimes, follies, and misfortunes of mankind". Though certainly indicative of a wretched and dismal (阴沉的) state of affairs, his remark also held forth the possibility of escaping such conditions through rational in quiry. Transcendence over the past could come about only through knowledge.
Other historians have invoked (行使) their discipline as a kind of ethical sanction (制裁). Lord Acton, a Victorian Englishman, insisted upon maintaining "morality as the sole impartial criterion of men and things". He called upon historians to act as arbiters, defending the proper standards, out of an expectation that the threat of disapproval in the future might discourage incorrect behavior in the present. Historians should call malefactors to account for their misdeeds.
Still others presumed the existence of links between the past and the future and suggested that comprehension of what had taken place might prepare for what will come about. How to get ready for the unknown has always posed a great problem. George Santayana, a Harvard philosopher, asserted early in the twentieth century that people who forget about the past are condemned to repeat it. This utilitarian (实利主义的) conception saw in the discipline a way of developing workable strategies for survival. History comprised the recollections of all people. Santayana’s claim affirmed that things learned from experience could aid in the avoidance of mistakes, pitfalls, and catastrophes in the future.
The biggest difficulty facing historians might be their ______.
选项
A、inability to offer convicting and correct explanations to each historical figure or event
B、lack of evidence for their interpretation
C、obsession with absolute accuracy
D、unwillingness to interpret history from different perspectives
答案
A
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/ADjd777K
本试题收录于:
公共英语三级笔试题库公共英语(PETS)分类
0
公共英语三级笔试
公共英语(PETS)
相关试题推荐
MostradioandtelevisionstationsintheUnitedStatesarecommercialstations,【C1】______istosay,theyearntheirmoneyfrom【
MostradioandtelevisionstationsintheUnitedStatesarecommercialstations,【C1】______istosay,theyearntheirmoneyfrom【
MostradioandtelevisionstationsintheUnitedStatesarecommercialstations,【C1】______istosay,theyearntheirmoneyfrom【
AninterestingtheoryineconomicsisdemonstratedbytheHeadManofasmallmountaintribe.Itseemsthatthistribewasvery
TextWhenaninventionismade,theinventorhasthreepossiblecoursesofactionopentohim:hecangivetheinventiontot
Therearevariouswaysinwhichindividualeconomicunitscaninteractwithoneanother.Threebasicwaysmaybedescribedasma
Travelingcanbefunnyandeasy.Avacationtriptoanotherpartofthecountryisespecially【C1】______whenthetravelingcondit
Travelingcanbefunnyandeasy.Avacationtriptoanotherpartofthecountryisespecially【C1】______whenthetravelingcondit
Travelingcanbefunnyandeasy.Avacationtriptoanotherpartofthecountryisespecially【C1】______whenthetravelingcondit
随机试题
__________是一个由行和列交叉排列的二维表,用于组织和分析数据。
f(2x)
A.发热、贫血、出血B.出血C.贫血D.发热、贫血、出血、淋巴结或肝脾肿大E.明显的脾肿大急性白血病的主要临床表现是
混凝土标准养护室的温度及相对湿度分别为()。
人民法院对建设纠纷案件作出判决的行为属于( )。
资产负债风险管理模式的主要分析手段包括()。
欧洲中央银行是为了适应欧元发行流通而设立的金融机构。从组织形式上看,其属于()。
美国心理学家马斯洛认为()是属于缺失性需要的一种。
昨天下午,在北京市一所普通中学的礼堂里正在召开初三年级学生家长会。台上两名老师正在讲着今年中考的形势,台下的家长个个面色凝重,几乎每个家长都在记笔记,生怕落下任何一个关键的细节。整个会场,除了老师讲话的声音外,几乎听不到其他声响,偶尔听到一个手机铃声显得异
根据下列材料回答问题。2005—2011年,平均每年新增城镇职工基本医疗保险参保者约为多少亿人?()
最新回复
(
0
)