Howard Zinn: Use and Abuse of History Summary Essay

Response to Howard Zinn article

History is something we constantly refer to progress ourselves as humans, we learn from our mistakes and continue to strive from our successes. But who is to say what is a horrible mistake or a courageous act of valor? That which was documented about what happened so long ago, was done by a person who spread the story or wrote it down from their perspective. Howard Zinn’s argument that there is no such thing as impartial history clearly illustrates that when history is recorded there is always two sides to the story, that things are either left out or kept in to sway the reader to one side or the other. “Everyone is biased, whether they …show more content…
“The chief problem in historical honesty is not outright lying. It is omission or deemphasis of important data. The definition of important, of course depends on one’s values.” (Use and Abuse of History51) The values that we hold to ourselves have come from our upbringing, from what we are taught growing up. It is no wonder that American’s see their country as beautiful, free and the birth of the ideal American business dream. Taking into my own perspective, “The Ludlow Massacre” (Use and Abuse of Hitory, 51-53) I initially held the idea that the American government always promoted the growth of its economy in positive measures. From what was taught to me in history class the only struggle I had known about in the America’s regarding the economy was the great depression and slavery. After reading that part of the article it seems very clear to myself why that was kept away from the public. The stock market crash, the great depression and slavery are all pieces of American history that are unavoidable that are known by the general public, but the Ludlow Massacre because of the scale and the remoteness of the incident, the American government was able to sweep it away out of view of the public eye. The depression and slavery were both triumphed by the government of America, where it was able to lead their country to economic prosperity and end slavery. But as for the

Show More

Howard Zinn: Use and Abuse of History Summary Essay

Related Documents: Howard Zinn: Use and Abuse of History Summary Essay

Literature Review on Mindfulness-Based Therapy Essay