Prompt: Some believe that history has little to teach us about today while others think that the study of the past helps us to understand the present. Ċ Discuss both views and give your own opinion.

The question of whether the study of the past does minimally to our understanding at present has become progressively contentious as some argue history plays a pivotal role in educating us. In my opinion, whilst their viewpoints seem legitimate, history can be misleading. Ċ On the one hand, the most frequently cited rationale for advocating the learning of history is the importance of understanding a culture. This argument rests on the fact that thoroughly knowing a culture can aid better decisions when it comes time for wars. For example, this can be most apparently seen in myriad battles held in Vietnam over the last century, when the nation had survived fights and waves of bombs from Japan, France and the US. Had these invaders been aware of the undefeatable spirits of the Vietnamese, they would have made alternative decisions not to set foot in the Vietnamese's homeland, saving billions of dollars and avoiding a few thousand deaths of the innocent citizenry. Thus, the accumulated evidence has reasoned for the complete comprehension of a nation's culture. Ċ On the other hand, albeit conceding the merits of studying history, I would still contend that history purely offers lessons set in a particular setting. This is predicated based on the assumption that every historical moment passes through a wide breadth of circumstances and this cannot be simplified in a few lessons. For instance, one of the salient illustrations of this is often observed in the Vietnam War in the 1960s, which is predominantly summed up with the prospect that it was impossible to invade and occupy the nation. This has unintentionally neglected the fact that the Americans withdrew their army, not because of the claimed failure but their general populace was not in favour of the mass killing in Vietnam, resisting the act of invasion. Therefore, the statement that history can purely be applied to a specific context confers a valid standpoint as we have witnessed enough tangible evidence from the past. Ċ In conclusion, though history brings invaluable insight into a culture, it is not a road map for the future. In my final thought, educators and governors should jointly propose a more holistic approach in order to set aside historical aspects when looking for the next big thing.