PORTFOLIO: FINAL EXAM

“Why [consider history]? Simply because I am interested in the past? No, if one means by […] a history of the past in terms of the present. Yes, if one means […] the history of the present.” Michel Foucault


Michel Foucault said concerning the study of history, “why [consider history]? Simply because I am interested in the past? No, if one means by that […] a history of the past in terms of the present. Yes, if one means […] the history of the present.” It is a deep, philosophical idea that Foucault is presenting, one that requires reflection and contemplation in order to understand. But, it is also in this question that Foucault gets at something that gnaws every student of history, why is that it is studied and why is it necessary? One would naturally think that a history of the past would prevent the present from ever progressing, however I believe that Foucault is presenting the counter-argument to this in his question. When studying American history myself this quarter, I believe that I now can come to a deeper understanding about this question. I believe that I can answer in such a way from my own experiences of studying history that might somehow scratch the surface of Foucault’s brilliant idea. [In essence, history does not prevent the present from progressing, but rather what enables the present to progress.]



[Foucault’s idea is the most proper explanation that can be had when asking why it is necessary to study history.] Foucault is expressing the idea that in order to understand the present, we must explore the past and how the present has come to be. Society did not suddenly appear, but rather it evolved. As an individual, I live in a society where every aspect of my life is surrounded by the past, and by the past I mean that I am dictated by the past. The past is inescapable; I cannot separate myself from history, as hard as I might try. In fact, to even properly understand why society has the status quo that it has, and understanding of the past is absolutely imperative. In this sense, studying the past is not a hobby or interest because an individual is curious or intrigued; it is so that society can understand why it functions as it does. So, in order to understand why the society in which I live in functions as it does, a study of the history of that society, or American history, is necessary.



[American history is an investigation of the present so that it becomes understandable and appreciated.] American society is dictated by the key principles outlined in the declaration of independence or the constitution, most principally the values of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. These have been given as rights to Americans today, but rather in order to understand what a privilege it is as an American to be given what may be a God granted right, an understanding of the founding fathers who wrote that phrase is necessary. Had Spain continued its conquest of the Americas, it is very likely that the people living in the area known as the “United States” might be speaking Spanish, but a journey through American history reveals how the Spanish went in debt after conquering South America and England took up the fight of exploration. Or perhaps why the United States is an independent country and not colonies of Great Britain, to understand why we have a free democratic society, looking back at the Revolutionary period reveals the struggle that was fought for American liberties.



[However, despite personal interpretation, I do not believe that history is to be judged, simply understood so that unfortunate repetition does not occur.] This is a common explanation of why history is studied, so the past is not repeated, although this can easily be scoffed at. It seems fickle when people have been studying history and yet still, they make the same mistakes that they have in the past. However, I believe that Foucault allows for this as well in his philosophy. When he says a “history of the present”, it does not just mean the present in terms of the past, I believe. It means that history is continual. This moment in time will someday be history that will be studied and perhaps even eagerly gobbled up by future world leaders hoping to analyze the mistakes or successes Americans made as a society. Political convictions aside, the war in Iraq will someday be judged and it will be judged according to the outcome that we do not yet foresee, though perhaps it could be guessed. Someday in the history textbooks the current president will either be written off as a warmonger or a visionary, but it is history at this very moment.



[If I did not interpret Foucault’s philosophy as I do, I believe most certainly that my learning in history would be vastly different.] I believe the most effective way of studying history is to, with a comprehension of history as a whole, to connect and to relate to different periods of time, including the present. Although, the present is just another part of the world’s history as a whole. In Kurt Vonnegut’s classic, “Slaughterhouse-Five”, he presented the idea of a world of four dimensions, where time was relative. In it, the world could be seen in the terms of time as well, where a person could experience all of their life at once; a person was not pitied if their life was necessarily bad at the moment, because life was seen as a whole and not in pieces. And, I believe, even if it is a three-dimensional world that society lives in and not a four-dimensional like the aliens that Kurt Vonnegut’s main character, Billy Pilgrim, encountered, it is a philosophy that should absolutely be taken into mind. But, it should be in a different way, it should be a way that is mindful that present is also history and that our actions will be judged accordingly by the future. And in a way, if history was looked at as a song, an endless song perhaps, but as a song that was enjoyable to the ears, an individual does not like just one part of the song, usually. It is the entire song that is to their liking, so history is something that is an endless song, perhaps repetitive, perhaps sometimes dreary, but always, every part, absolutely necessary.



[With an understanding of the past, the present can progress to a future that reflects understanding.] It can not be guaranteed perhaps, that the future will be brighter than the present, besides that is a question of opinion anyways. It is doubtful that the British might have counted the loss of the colonies as a brighter future, though it is certain that many colonists felt that it was. However, with an understanding of the past we can progress and grow towards a future that reflects the past. And while history may eventually repeat itself, there is something that cannot be changed about the course of time. However, that does not mean that individuals are not obligated to understand the past, and though we may not be able to fix the past, we can fix the present. And it is that eternal struggle for the present, the one that I am present in at this very moment, is what makes the understanding of the past so vitally necessary.