Hannah Pettersson

History 1500

Dr. Beurtheret

November 27, 2018

Early World History Contribution

In grade school, we’re immediately taught history that revolves around the United

States gaining independence. The history i was taught began when Christopher

Columbus discovered America. History is a requirement in general education. Until

taking hitstory 1500, I haven't learned anything from before that event. In this paper, i

will talk about why history in general education is important, why early world history is

important to understand recent history, and what early history has contributed to my

education.

Knowing history is important. General education requires students to learned

specific parts of history. History such as the individual state the student lives in, the

countries history, the historical geography of the world, general history of the world, and

history of the government and economics. Learning history give us a chance to

understand the past and learn from it. To help better the future. It helps to understand

where we as a civilization, originated from and how we’ve evolved. The philosopher

Etienne Gilson said, “History is the only laboratory we have in which to test the

consequences of thought.” History opens up to students, the record of human

experience. It gives examples of how people have responded to the challenged that
have been faced in front them. Some have been positive, while others should not be

repeated. It helps students with shaping the future as they learn from those past

mistakes.

Learning early history helps better understand what early civilizations went

through to achieve their success in developing countries and territory. It’s a timeline to

show cultural development, claiming territory, and the evolution of human interaction.

For example, when learning in school, we learn from when england is at large in europe

and exploration is a main focus. Discovering land and claiming it to gain more power is

where we start in history. When Christopher Columbus landed in roughly south america.

Making a claim that he discovered the land and claimed it for england. But what

happened up until that point? I always wondered before college why we never learned

about chinese dynasties, the roman empire, the crusades, and many more major events

that led up to history after the 16th century. Learning these major early civilizations and

events show the different rises and falls of kingdoms, empires, and religions.

History 1500 has helped me answer my questions of what led up to the european

civilization. I've had a huge fascination of greek, roman, egyptian, and norse mythology

since i was a little girl. I knew all the myths but i didn't know where the originated from. I

didn't know there were philosophers, empires, and other stories that originated from

those countries. With the greeks, i didn't know how they had developed into a

successful civilization or where they came from. Knowing where these main civilizations

originated form helps me better understand the culture and the stories. The laws that we
still use today originated before the 1500’s. The development of language, cultures,

music, and more gives me more respect to where it all originated from.

Learning history is very important for a student knowledge. Learning from the

past helps prepare for the future. Learning early world history gives students a timeline

of where and when human civilization developed. For me, understanding that there’s

always something to learn about history is very important. It’s a reminder to learn from

past mistakes. While it’s important to learn about the history of the country, it’s also

important to learn about the development of human civilization to understand what and

where humanity had to go through to get to where the world is today.