Why do we study history?
Imagine this: it’s three in the afternoon, you’re in a hot classroom, and your professor is, and has been, going on about the propaganda movement, as you hurriedly jot down everything they say, both in speech and through a projected PowerPoint. For many, it’s a nightmare, but I actually find it enjoyable.
As someone who grew up appreciating books, stories, and eventually history, I often find myself in friendly discussions about whether or not studying our history and its figures is relevant to our context today. As you might guess, I always argue yes.
I say this because, firstly, as I started getting into the American Occupation (which was binge-watching the “Bayaniverse” movies), I realized that I became more critical of what I saw and heard. I constantly found myself asking whether a scene was portrayed faithfully, or if fictional elements were added for effect. This cascaded into becoming more analytical of the facts and figures in front of me—after all, history teaches us that there will always be multiple interpretations of a certain event, and that one isn’t necessarily more important than the other.
Being able to go beyond presented information is definitely useful academically—it helped me become more evaluative of the sources I use for research papers and look at case studies from different angles. But I’ve also realized that during interpersonal conflicts, history teaches you to hear out all sides and realize that sometimes, issues aren’t as simple as who’s right or wrong, but that people act and react differently because they are, foremostly, different people. This, in turn, can lead us to be more understanding, empathetic, and kind—three qualities that are in shortage today.
As I continued to enrich myself in YouTube lectures on the country in the ‘60s, I eventually realized that the events I saw unfolding in the news were simply sequels to the great revolutions of the past. It made me pause, struck by the fact that there may be a time when some kid in the future reads about a year that I lived in and what it entailed for broader Philippine history.
Caring about and appreciating history is caring for and appreciating the country in the present. History can become an entry point to being aware of national events and issues, forming important opinions on them, and taking a stand when one needs to be taken. Knowing that much of history happened because of several individual decisions can be the foundation for making wiser, better decisions during elections. As the 2028 national elections draw near, this becomes something to think about, not only for me and my fellow youth, some of whom will be voting for the first time, but for the nation as a whole. That being cognizant of our mistakes in the past will teach us not to commit them again. That through holistically understanding the upsides and pitfalls of each party, we can make decisions that are true to us, our values, and the lessons we’ve learned, regardless of what those may be.
But what is arguably the most important point of all is that history teaches us to be better. Many people say that history cannot be used in their workplace. I mostly agree. Office workers would likely benefit more from knowing how to compute than from knowing about the galleon trade. Jeepney drivers who toil day in and out would probably benefit from knowing routes over Rizal.
History isn’t necessarily there for us to be better in the workplace, but instead to be better people. Oftentimes, we’re taught to revere our heroes like some religious figure, a model of perfection that no ordinary person can attain. But it is through history that we realize the people we so fervently praise are just people who, like us, can be short-tempered, sensitive, and quintessentially flawed. It turns out that this heroism of Rizal or even Bonifacio that we tend to hold as stuff of legend actually is innate and exists inside all of us.
More often than not, it shows us that to be a hero is to be human, and to be human is to be imperfect. By studying these figures, along with the struggles and flaws that shaped them, we see that when we do something as simple as relating to a “hero,” we can do something great ourselves, whether in devotedly advocating for rights, or in simply being kind.
Time and again, history is dismissed as a required subject, full of long readings and abstract ideas. While it may be that, it is also what we make of it—our study of history can instead be personal reflections about what it means for us to be Filipino, to have inherited a messy origin story full of colonization and liberation in repeating cycles, but most of all about what it means to value a country that was fought for by people in the past, and what it means to fight for it in the present.
—————-
Joaquin Yulo, 18, is a business student from Ateneo who is overly enthusiastic about history class.
