History Should Be Interesting

My father was a history teacher. He was also a wonderful storyteller, which meant that as a child I was raised in a world where history was made both real and relevant through the power of that storytelling. Dad kept it from being boring, and the very true histories he told were far more fascinating and entertaining to me than any fairytales. As a result, because the stories always came first, the black and white pictures that I found later in the books were much more engaging. They represented puzzles that provided clues I could use to help me interpret the stories I already knew.

Of course none of this happened consciously for me. I just already knew the story and thought it was really cool to see a picture that helped bring it even more to life for me.

As an eight year-old I assumed everyone grew up this way. Sadly, they did not.

I was always perplexed by not just the people, but the NUMBER of people who display zero interest in history and past events. As a child I could not comprehend how anyone couldn’t like it. It was like not enjoying ice cream or fried chicken.

But as an adult with a different perspective, I realize I was blessed with a father who was uniquely talented and skilled to impart that appreciation to me. I learned history almost opposite from the way most people did. They learned dates and dry facts, with little effort made to draw them in and make it real. The low-quality, often staged photographs that accompanied those dry facts and dates did little to add interest.

That is why I generally applaud efforts like this, and pretty much ANYTHING that Ken Burns and other popular storytellers have done to make history more accessible to people. While some critics might carp that they cheapen and simplify history, I’m just genuinely happy that they add life and perspective to it that sometimes spark an interest in people.

The colorized pictures here make their subjects look much more real and interesting. I think they help people - especially children - want to know more about the people they represent. Instead of learning the dry facts and dates first, they might learn the very human story those facts and dates commemorate.

Regardless, check them out on a screen larger than your cellphone. As The History Guy says, these are people who deserve to be remembered.