The Study of History The study of history is vital to an
understanding of our contemporary world, for we can hardly
understand the present moment if we don’t develop an awareness
of how it came to be. Historians pursue every place, period,
population, and process under the sun, from antiquity to the
near present, and on these journeys to the past they explore the
connections that make up the complexity of human society – from
individuals to institutions, from economics to religion to
recreation, and from formal politics to family life. As they
learn to recognize the fundamental importance of context,
perspective, and contingency to the changes and continuities
that occur within and between individual lives, communities,
countries, and continents, students of history acquire not just
a firm knowledge of the past; they also develop an invaluable
way to approach and analyze the world. In short, the study of
history not only opens a window into the past; it also provides
a framework for understanding the present