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Reod the following oryuments ond olternotive orguments and filt jn the exomples where necessary

HISTORY

question: 'History does not help

us

to prepare for the future.,

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this true?

Answer: History is the discipline that records and interprets past events involving human beings. lt is a convenient tool for us to glean insights and derive useful lessons from. lnr- pndblc\ u.r to avoid m akp. in the lututc.
Qualifications: Howcver one must acknowledge that as the world rapidly evolves, what worked in the past may no longer be relevant for the future. Hence, there is a constant need to adapt and History may only be useful as a form of reference at times.

llistory allows us to learn from our rstal es ol the past and pave a path of ptimism and hope for the future eneration. Making atonemcnts for past haviour are markers of trust for the

ofthe past seem to have no iscernible impact on the future and ve fallen to deaf ea.s. Despite claiming at we will atone for past behaviour, we
e lessons

ill come across governments and ndividuals who are capable of torture nd genocide.

isLory helps us predrct fLrture

ehaviour and make decisions- Wp nstantly refer to past events to make nse of whether we are going to do better or wot5e in thc futLrre.

constant harking back to the past jt leads a country only focus on its past glories rather n the current realities- As such, we ay ned a break from the past in order o move into the prcsent.
n also be crippling as

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e frfrrrists also believe that it is trogressive to head into the 21't ntury thinking about the past as what orled very well in the past rs no longer .:.': . i . '! i.,'::.r11, .1:: '.,.' ):'t.

2.

Concept/lssue: It lhere any value to H;story?

Question: 'The study of history is futile.' Do you agree?

Answer: WhV should we bother learning about things that happened far away and long ago? lsn't there quite enough to learn about the world today? why add to thc burden by looking at the past? Although these criticisms aim to question the value of History, one cannot deny that ultimately the study o{ history is indccd worthwhile and necessary for the education of effective citizens and worthv human beings. Historical knowledge is no more and no less than caaefully and critically constructed collective mcmory. As such it can both make us wiser in our public choices and mo.e richly human in 9ur private lives.
rguments
udying History merely encourages indless memorisation. lt is a Iist of rimes, misfortunes and waffare. one of e re,rsons hi\tory holds rts place in urrent education is because in the ast, leaders believed that knowledge f certain historical facts helped istioguish the educated from the neducated. SLrch a practice is no longer f vaiue as the 21" century requires us go bevond rote learning.
istorV goes beyond just remembering acts. As a discipline, History makes us er thinkers through skills such as iticallV analysinll evidence and

xploring different perspectives. lt Prs a storehouse of information bout how people and socretres behave. It was the Spanish philosopher antayana who once remarked that hose who ignore history are doomed to t its mistakes. We need to study story more closely, and epply some of he Iessons learnt to our current ituations. (Various levels: individual, tional, elobal).

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dvancement opportunities, national dentity (knowledge of nation's history)

llell the national story, emphasizing ldistinctive featurcs of the national ls [xperience, and meant to drive home

construct, designed to maintain the atus quo (the existing order of power n society). ln a world that embraces qual opportunitV for all, this is a moded concept.

lective history is essentialfor a ntry to succeed and it inc0lcates a nse of belonging and nationalistic ride.

istory is usually written by victors and ay lack objectivitV. lnformation can be istofted / withheld to suit a ruling arty's views and to iustifv a particLrlar

istorians are always at work interpreting the past, asking new uestions, searching new sources and inding new meanings in old documents n order to correct existing knowledge nd provide a new dimension.

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3.

Concept/lssue: History and its subjective nature

Question: 'History is a tool used by politicians to justify their How accurate do you 'ntentions.' find this observation to be? Answer: Whether it's an ex president blocking release of incrjminating White House tapes, the Russian government closing a KGB archive to foreign reseaachers or lapanese officials {orcing a school textbook author to excise references to World War ll era atrocities, the public's ability to learn the truth about historic events is hobbled when politicians manipulate history to serve

Qualifications: However, one must also consider that history can also serue as an instrument for nation building and the implementation of sound policies when used wisely.

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t times, politicians may withhold the ruth to protect the nation's Past ctions. Facts can bc omitted for the i r.- ai lrtr- ,:. i,.:li..i.'r,.a','! i::,,rii, '. ve been lambasted with hitewashing historical facts by not cknowledgiag its aggression on the Iternative views istorv is not just a tool of manipulation ut it can be used by politicians to unite nd build a nation. A collective history li:: 'l .:r'rs. .,i l.al.rrtin: sir.1i:.1 I iir.l coiilc lrouicl lie neaessaiy lo c ci.ia i. national identity and ensure that the people live harmoniously and are not nclined to migrate to other countries.

History can also become an accomplice r politicians when it is used as ustification for war-mongering efforts. oliticians rnay rake Lrp pa5t wars, draw arallels to the past events and inse.t fcrences from the wars in the 20th ntury in their speeches to convince he public of the need to engage in

istory can serve as a good guide for liticians to plan the future ofthe untry based on past events. lt can erve as an instrument for good if the liticians are able to apply the lessons the past (domestic policies, international and regional relationships) reat leaders have emerged due to heir knowledge and insightful pplication of history.

iticians use history as a tool to justify eir policies and boost their popularity mong voters. lt provides robust, ompelling arguments in favor of a ourse of action and it also makes them ook profound and weli-read at the ame time. But they carefully select the vents that would aid them and veniently ignore any past mistakes hat may have happened.

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concept/lssue: Optimism or Pessimism about the 20th/21"t C (past future)

Question: Should we look towards the 21'1 century with optimism or pessimism?

evidence, but one ought to consider viewing it with optimism because despite a history of warfare and destrLrction, Mankind is generally motivated by the desire to create a better world for humanity.

Arguments It is in our nature to not buckle down to the weight of pessimism and to choose to hope against all odds, Deciding that our world is too bleak to be saved suggests that hope and relatlonships are meaningless.

Alternative views
Much of why pessimism persists comes from the fact that we are unable to come up with the technological, political or legal fixes to solve our world's problems. Despite our human ingenuity and perseverance, the problems of the world are fundamentally unfixable by
us_

EC?

Despite Man's war records, there have been efforts to rescue people who were downtrodden and avoid war at any cost. The advances in technology provide more jobs and better standard of living for more people. lT is an innate desire for Man to create a better world for society. We have made tremendous progres5 in our technologies, achievements and svstems and the 21't century is one filled with new opportLlnitics and possibilities.
EC?

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" history of war, economic
by greed and manipulation,

" crisis caused

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discrimination of all sorts. With such an appalling record, it is hard to talk about the 21't c with a great deal of optimism.

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Ultimately, lt depends on one's personal choice of how one chooses to look at the world based on their faith, values and beliefs. Even one person can make a aii- rilia.n: cir. i:'' io i ha \'. crl.i.

History quotes: http://www.quotegarden.com/history.html

1

Autobiography Biography Discipline

a collection of documnts and records. An andivid!al's account oftheir Iife

An accountof an individual's life, written by another person
The study, or practicc, ofa subject usine a specificset of mthods,

termr

and approachs. Historyisa dlscip in, as i5 Archaeo losy, Chemistry or Eiology. 5

History

Either the study ofthe prst, or the product of our attempts ro undcrstand
Eith er

6 7 8

Historiosraphy
Th past

the

elhods and principles !5ed

'f

the study of hGtory,

orihe

[vents which hrppned previously in timc. (Lncludc5 History as we]l a! personalexperience) Materinl ftom, or dkeclly related lo, the p.n. ln HGtory, primary sourcet are usualy leiters, records or othr do.uments (e:ted du.ing the period that is being studied, such as diaries, legal noliccs or accounts

Serondary Sources

Material.reated by somebody romoved from the event being5tudied who w.r eithersot atthe event, orwas wo.kinglater. For instance, ali
historica! textbo oks a re second a ry s ou.ces.

10

Propaganda

informaiion, ideas, orrumorsdeliberatelyspread widc yto help orharm a . rn L ru.ro . noL ol. p
To Sloss over or cover up

11 72

Historical revisionism

the r examination ofthe acceptcd "f:cts" and interpretations ofhGtory with.n eyetowards updatingitwilh newly d iscovered, morc accurate, and less biased information. Broadly, it is a skeptic.l approach, that hlstory ae it has been traditionally told may not be entirely accurate
The depiction ofa country as a whole, encomp.5slnS its culture, t.aditions,
A set

13

Nationalldentity
Tradition

14

".eJ"6, "nd DoL,l,, ofcultur.l bcliefs,

customs, practices, values long ettablislred rnd

pa5sed down fiom one genration to another generation-

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