We're so much like pre-WWII, it's not even funny.
Posted on 06/15/2009 1:59:43 PM PDT by khnyny
To the pessimists evidence that the field of diplomatic history is on the decline is everywhere. Job openings on the nation’s college campuses are scarce, while bread-and-butter courses like the Origins of War and American Foreign Policy are dropping from history department postings. And now, in what seems an almost gratuitous insult, Diplomatic History, the sole journal devoted to the subject, has proposed changing its title.
For many in the field this latest suggestion is emblematic of a broader problem: the shrinking importance not only of diplomatic history but also of traditional specialties like economic, military and constitutional history.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Towards the end, this part made me laugh:
[ (A handful of faculty members had the view that “military history is evil,” Mr. Hamby said.) The department finally agreed to post a listing for a specialist in “U.S. and the world,” he said, “the sort of mushy description that could allow for a lot of possibilities.”]
Mr. White is that you?
The Left hates history. They know if the serfs read it, they will not stand a chance of reshaping America in their own image. So they let History classes and History consciousness erode, and do some pushing toward that end too.
They have vanished. I returned to school recently, and I was fortunate to have had 3 History professors who told the class in no uncertain language that we would be studying History on the professor's terms.
One even told the class, "Fortunately for you young people, I am a dying breed." I loved it! The young people were less enthusiastic.
Don’t tell me, revisionist history is now considered traditional?
Or, do they fear their revisions aren’t standing?
I have a tendency to agree with Orwell—
Who controls the present controls the past. Who controls the past controls the future.
We don’t teach history because if we did, we would be throwing Socialism out the window.
It’s good to know the Academy still sees the Viet Nam War as the root of every problem, even the failure to teach history. Cheez!
Yes. For the past 50 or 60 years.
At NYU, the history department seized hold of the levers of power in the administration—President, Dean of Arts & Science, etc. So they had an enormous budget and lots of new hires.
They didn’t hire a single professor who taught history before World War II. Among their hires: a young black woman who taught the history of hip hop. Greece? Rome? The Middle Ages? The Renaisance? Even American history? Forget about it, as the older professors gradually retired or died.
Two of the best courses I had in college (1970s) were in the History Dept. One was “20th Century US Diplomatic History” and the other was “US WW2 History”. Both were taught by the same professor and I think I still have one of the books. These were courses that made you think and went way beyond dates, places, and people. I certainly have a better understanding of where we are today because of these courses.
The article even states that this trend started in the 1960’s and goes on to describe the change on college campuses statistically over the years.
All the electives now available plus the reduction of required courses make many traditional courses candidates for extinction — just like the USA as a whole, a candidate for extinction if we continue on the current path, and I think we will.
World History = Multiculturalism
Imho, history is the foundation of a good education - something our Founding Fathers understood very well.
History scares the left because it soon becomes clear that the more freedom a society has the more prosperous they are.
That is so they can misinform their readers ;)
Excellent point!
The history of hip hop? Lol.
The whole of Western society, up to, and including the US, has been significantly shaped by the Greco/Roman traditions and European history.
The Black Death was the beginning of the end of feudalism in Europe. Serfs left the manors and migrated to the cities to pursue careers as craftsmen and merchants, they earned more money and mercantilism developed. Within a century, the Renaissance began; the Renaissance DID NOT start because great artists were suddenly born, the Renaissance started because people had money to spend.
The early colonists who came to America came in search of freedom and opportunity. By the time of the Revolution, America was nearly as affluent as England, within another century we were the wealthiest nation on earth.
The history of the 20th century is to a large degree a study of Marxism and totalitarianism and without fail as freedom vanished in these totalitarian regimes so did prosperity.
HOME SCHOOL!!!
There are no such things as ‘traditional history’ courses anymore. Hasn’t been for quite a while. Traditional was supplanted by liberal ‘Revisionist’ a long time ago. Lies are taught to our children now - at least in public school.
When you have a President who was elected talking about 57 states, what do you expect?
My best friend these past 30 years sent his daughter to St. John’s College in Annapolis last year. Classic liberal arts education, no hip hop, black history, or feminist studies BS.
It’s the history of the “here and now”. The edicts of the 0ne and it’s disciples. Sadly, history like the Constitution and human rights are long forgotten. If you have any doubt, look at the quality of our “Congressional Representatives”. They don’t even understand the legislation they are voting for.
We're so much like pre-WWII, it's not even funny.
The course I took in Ancient History in my first year at prep school—mostly Greece and Rome—shaped the rest of my education and to a large extent my life. I also took four years of Latin.
Before that I attended a public grade school, where they were already teaching Social Studies instead of History.
Great sketch of 600+ years!
The thought occurred to me after reading some of the posts on this thread. Obviously, something is lacking in our present educational curriculum and popular culture.
Actually, you can do worse than start with the Penguin Classics. Most are well chosen and well translated. Also some good volumes in the Oxford World Classics.
Also, I like Robert Fitzgerald’s Odyssey, and Robert Mandelbaum’s Aeneid.
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