The Clearances

[Ryan Ross]

Steve,

Do you think it is only Scottish History that people are woefully ignorant of?

I find that sadly, a great number of people I bump into have little grasp of the history of the United States (let alone the rest of the world).

A great truth is that those who delve into history thinking that their ancestors were always "The Good Guys" are bound for disappointment.

Our modern concepts of human rights are going to be challenged by the cruel misdeeds done in the past.

The best we can do is our best to fully understand our history and realize that things are often not black and white.

Cheers

Jamie

More correct, you couldn't be. I'm finishing my B.A. in History, in two weeks. If I've learned anything, its that misinformation is EVERYWHERE. I barely ever read a scholarly text about a topic I've studied, where I don't find issue with some of the "facts" presented.

People think of what we read in books as "history". The truth is, we can get a taste of true history through very careful primary research ONLY- just a taste. If you haven't researched it yourself, or you don't know the researcher personally, YOU CAN NEVER BE 100% SURE. What we read in books/journals/etc... are stories. Historians like to tell a cohesive story. If they don't have the facts to back them up, they fudge (yes, I admit it... I've done it too... but just a little bit!).

I don't want to sound like I'm a cynic, I just want people to be mindful of how much they believe. Even "well established knowledge" is often not real.

[beloitpiper]

People think of what we read in books as "history". The truth is, we can get a taste of true history through very careful primary research ONLY- just a taste.

Even primary sources have a bias. That's why I'm an archaeologist!

[Ryan Ross]

Even primary sources have a bias. That's why I'm an archaeologist!

Then you surely know that archaeology IS the most primary of all research! Read carefully, sonny (and notice that I didn't say "examination of primary documents").