On to Study of History

History is taught so people can become more well rounded and better understand the world. But, like any other school subject, it is forced onto you whether you like it or not. I have mixed feelings about that.

On one hand, learning to like something is an recursive process, the more positive experiences you have with a subject, the more into it you get. So the current system can give the right first experiences.
On the other way, the whole process is artificial. And can result the student having just bad experience over bad experience.

With the internet, now there is much more ways to get on to history besides school, from YouTube channels, podcasts, books, even online communities. You can define your journey, from the Song Dynasty battling the Mongols, to Garibaldi leading a revolution, to a farmer just trying to survive the Great Dust Bowl.

Ok but, Why study history?

More details of the outside

Studying any subject makes so, for the same object, you can see more details .It lets you appreciate complexity and make connections with the rest of the world.

The same goes for history. When you visit new places, you start to understand why things are the way they are, and how the people there were shaped by past events.

At the start of 2025, while traveling in Buenos Aires, I was waiting in line for the opening of the Eco-Park. In the distance, I saw a statue, a guy on a horse.

I walked over and, it was Garibaldi (the Hero of Two Worlds). What an wonderfull surprise.
I took a bunch of photos, found really beautiful the monument and was weirded out by the existent of the fasces there. If I didn’t know any history, it would have just been a random old statue.

This extended insight also applies to art. So many stories are set in a historical context, or at the very least, the author lived in one.

More details of the inside

Studying history is also about understanding yourself , your background, your parents experiences, and where your ancestors came from. Without it, even major events that directly affected your family can be forgotten or erased.

During college, I found myself studying in a city with people from all around Brazil. I defined myself as the guy from my state, Paraná.
But after studying the history of my region (North Paraná), I realized that my city and Curitiba, the capital, have completely different histories.

North Paraná was colonized based on the search for cheaper land for the expansion of coffee plantations from São Paulo, while Curitiba was created as a stop for cattle merchants coming from the south. While I don't have anything against the capital, my region is culturally more connected with the interior of São Paulo (and lo and behold, my family from both mother's and father's sides are from this region).

This paints a much richer picture. I am not only defined by the political entities of my country with their artificial borders, I am much more.