Topic 38 Is learning about the past useful?

It is often argued that spending much time on studying history is unreasonable (нецелесообразно), since the information people obtain lacks the practical implementation (применение). However, after careful thought, I have come to disagree with it. I believe that history provides valuable sources for understanding different people and societies, predicting future trends and building a person's identity. History generates past experiences and formulates the steps of development. It provides us with numerous examples of "cause-effect" events, which help to understand different social mechanisms.

Everything that is happening today stems from the past (проистекает из прошлого) and will have direct effect on the future. Being aware of our history helps to avoid old mistakes and make right decisions. The majority of all the political conflicts have a long history, for instance the Middle East or Russia-Chechnya tensions (напряжение). A closer study of their deeper reasons and the measures taken beforehand can prove to be invaluable in finding the right solution today. It can save thousands of lives.

At the same time, studying history of our own country or region builds up (создает) our identity, gives us a feeling of belonging to a certain group of people. Therefore, if we face a problem of communicating with a person of other culture, the basic knowledge of his history can prove (может оказаться) absolutely necessary for a successful and productive interaction.

To sum up, I strongly believe that it is highly beneficial for modern people to posses (владеть) a good knowledge of the history, because it assures a profound understanding (глубокое понимание) of social mechanisms, helps to avoid many mistakes and promotes a better communication between different nations.