introduction
If you ask, "What is the use of history?" ”
I believe that the vast majority of people will think of the sonorous and powerful famous words of Li Shimin, Taizong of the Tang Dynasty: "Taking history as a mirror, we can know the rise and fall."
In short, the core value of history for the present is to provide valuable lessons for the present so that we can stand on the shoulders of those who came before us, avoid repeating the mistakes of the past, and better move forward into the future.
But when we look far west, we find that the philosopher Hegel there made a view that seems to run counter to our ideas: "The only lesson that mankind learns from history is that man does not learn from history".
What is the reason for this? Why is there such a big discrepancy between the functions and understandings of history between the East and the West?
An important reason is that historians of different cultures often have completely different penetrating historical lessons due to their different perspectives and perspectives. The vast majority of historians spend their entire lives immersed in a narrow field of expertise and become one-sided experts. They certainly have deep knowledge in their field, but it is often difficult to look at history from a more macro and comprehensive perspective.
And only a very small number of peerless geniuses dare to stand on the high ground of human thought and overlook the long history of civilization. Their credo is that only those geniuses who dare to challenge tradition, dare to break conventions, and dare to talk about everything can truly touch the essence and truth of history. Therefore, those geniuses of world history who can overlook human civilization are particularly valuable.
Will Durant is such a rare historical genius. With his unique perspective and profound insight, he has revealed the mystery and wisdom of history to us, and has become a shining pearl in the field of world history research.
Durant, the world's most famous intellectual giant, won the Pulitzer Prize, a literary temple and was awarded the Medal of Freedom for his outstanding contributions, has a high place in the history of American thought. He is known as one of the most outstanding philosophers and historians, and his profound scholarship and unique insights have gone beyond the scope of Dewey's pragmatism and attracted the attention of the world. The concept of civilization that he adhered to set an example for future generations.
As a brilliant philosopher, Durant has always been able to think outside the box and find his own way. He dared to challenge authority and put forward new perspectives and insights, and in his book "The Story of Civilization", Durant left four historical lessons for mankind to remember:
▌Lesson 1: Heavy agriculture and suppression of commerce may inhibit the development of civilization
Historically, human civilization can be divided into two civilizations, namely commercial civilization and agricultural civilization.
The biggest difference between the two lies in the emphasis on agriculture and mercantilism, and most ancient civilizations have chosen the path of heavy agriculture and suppression of commerce, perhaps because of geographical factors, or because of the different classes in power. However, it is precisely the emphasis on agriculture and the suppression of commerce that has hindered the development of many civilizations, and when the society has reached a certain stage, it is necessary to choose to emphasize commerce, otherwise it will be difficult for civilization to achieve higher development, and it is not a good thing for civilization to blindly pursue social stability and choose to emphasize agriculture and suppress business.
▌Lesson 2: Civilization is not designed, but grows naturally
Many people believe that civilization was designed by the elites in human history, which is also the source of the theory of many conspiracy theorists, but as long as you carefully study history, you will find that except for a small number of political systems and institutions, the background color of each civilization is actually naturally grown, and the subsequent system design is just to paint on this background and base on it. And that kind of utopian civilization is more of a beautiful yearning, and the ideal country is not always so beautiful.
Durant dislikes the ideal country very much, advocating spontaneous order, he believes that the ideal state is a kind of nasty existence, representing rigidity and immutability, and the fire of human civilization comes from the free market of ideas, good laws come from customs and conflicts of interests, and speculation comes from the communication, cooperation and competition of human individuals.
▌Lesson 3: All utopias in history will end in tragic failure
Utopianism, this concept has carried the yearning and pursuit of a better life for human beings since ancient times. Paint a picture of a flawless future world. In this world, the government is like an all-powerful wise man, able to see everything in the world and accurately control every detail of society. It can not only ensure the stability and prosperity of the country, but also provide adequate welfare and security for every citizen, and the welfare system nourishes every life like sunshine and rain. Whether it is the old and infirm or the fledgling youth, they can enjoy the care and care of the society. Education, medical care, pension and other fields have been fully invested and developed, so that every citizen can enjoy fair and high-quality services.
But all utopias in the history of mankind have failed, perhaps as an inevitable result of the defects of capitalism, or as some other reason, but mankind must be well aware that attempts at utopias are very likely to have tragic consequences, such as those of the Nazis.
▌Lesson 4: "Our history is clouded by three shadows"
History as we know it is largely wrong or false, and this is mainly due to three factors, namely, contradictory historical evidence, various prejudices caused by historians' lack of ideological height, and distorted interpretations of ethnicity and religion caused by excessive patriotism, the most obvious of which is the attitude of Nazi Germany and modern Koreans towards history.
And it is precisely because of the realization of these problems that Durant decided to correct the historical memory of mankind with a limited life and rigorous scholarship, and his pen will continue to be fifty years of days and nights.
His magnum opus is "The Story of Civilization", which is a grand masterpiece, known as the treasure of the academic palace, the whole book is sprinkled, the number of words is as high as an astonishing 15 million words, it is not only a philosophical point of view, in-depth analysis of the great history of mankind of the masterpiece, but also a plot ups and downs, fascinating and wonderful story collection, as well as a delicate brushstroke, rich emotional beautiful prose picture. What's even more amazing is that its binding design is ingenious, and the selection of pictures is exquisite, which is the best among works of art.
Flipping through this heavy tome, no matter which page you start from, you can feel the brilliance of civilization falling like bright stars. Durant, the "hero worshipper without fear", presents the great thinkers who have shone in the long history of mankind with a unique perspective and brushstrokes. Rather than dwelling on trivial details, he devoted himself to "writing biographies of the greatest minds and interpreting their intellectual heritage and life imprints."
At the end of this series of books, Durant, with his profound academic skills and unique perspective, brings together the wisdom crystallization of the 11 volumes of "The Story of Civilization" to draw a colorful historical scroll. He analyzed in detail the important role played by many factors, such as geographical conditions, economic conditions, racial superiority and inferiority, human nature, religious activities, socialism, government, war, morality, the law of prosperity and decline, and biological evolution. Through the in-depth excavation of these elements, he not only let us understand the development of history more deeply, but also provided us with rich food for thought and enlightenment, which he named "The Lessons of History":
He made it clear that human history is only a moment in the universe, so we must learn to face everything past and present with humility. In addition, he provided a profound lesson for history from a biological point of view: life is competition, life is choice, and life must multiply. These perspectives not only reveal the nature of life, but also provide us with a new perspective on how to understand history. Finally, Durant emphasized the importance of religion in history. One of the lessons of history, he argues, is that religion has multiple lives and a tradition of resurrection.
This concept allows us to re-examine the role and value of religion in human civilization, and further broadens our knowledge and understanding of history.
For this reason, I sincerely recommend Dr. Durant's outstanding book, "The Story of Civilization" (11 volumes, 15 volumes). This is a set of masterpieces that reveal the heritage of human civilization, with its unique perspective and profound insights, breaking the boundaries of countries and disciplines, and skillfully connecting all human history with the characteristics of civilization and the characteristics of the times as a unit, narrating all human history, starting from the "establishment of civilization" to "the lessons of history", covering almost every era and every country's important historical events and figures.
The wide range of fields covered by this set of masterpieces is breathtaking, and the fields of politics, economics, military, religion, culture, philosophy, history, education, art, music, science and technology are fully reflected and discussed in depth in the book. He is a master of the study of the history of civilization.
Dr. Durant, with his profound knowledge and keen insight, presents us with a three-dimensional and complete picture of human civilization.
What is even more commendable is that "The Story of Civilization" not only narrates history, but also pays attention to the reflection and enlightenment of human civilization. It not only allows us to understand the past, but also makes us think about the future. The profound ideas and insights contained in this series of books make it a masterpiece of the study of the history of civilization, and also provide us with valuable reference and enlightenment.
Our only 3,000-word recommendation essay has not yet reflected its value; As a 15 million-word vast history of civilization, it may be difficult for us to read this masterpiece in its entirety in this life, but we can take out a book from the bookshelf every day and read it for half an hour.
Now go to Douyin and search for "Summer Worm Wants to Drink Ice", click on the window after following it, search for this book, and you can collect it with one click.