PArt 1 1. Reading Read the article Defence of History” and answer multiple-choice questions. “In Only ONE answer is correct. IN DEFENCE OF HISTORY Paragraph 1 We live in an age when immense to write or teach history in an energies and resources are devoted to intellectual sewer either. the falsification of the past, and it is Paragraph 2 therefore all the more important, in We should have no illusions about those places where the past can be this. While some of us may prefer to researched and discussed freely and forget history or to rewrite history to objectively, to carry out this work to serve some present purpose, the facts the limit of our abilities. It has been of the past, as distinct from the record argued that complete objectivity is or perception of the past, cannot be impossible, since scholars are human changed. And the consequences of beings, with their own loyalties and those facts cannot be averted by either biases. This is no doubt true, but does ignorance or misrepresentation, not affect the issue. To borrow an whatever its motives. analogy, any surgeon will admit that Paragraph 3 complete asepsis - that is, conditions In our own time there has been a in which there is absolutely no risk of considerable change in our perception infection - is also impossible, but one of the scope, scale and content of does not, for that reason, perform history. In bygone times, it was surgery in a sewer. There is no need considered sufficient if a country, a
PArt 1 1. Reading Read the article “In Defence of History” and answer multiple-choice questions. Only ONE answer is correct. IN DEFENCE OF HISTORY Paragraph 1 We live in an age when immense energies and resources are devoted to the falsification of the past, and it is therefore all the more important, in those places where the past can be researched and discussed freely and objectively, to carry out this work to the limit of our abilities. It has been argued that complete objectivity is impossible, since scholars are human beings, with their own loyalties and biases. This is no doubt true, but does not affect the issue. To borrow an analogy, any surgeon will admit that complete asepsis - that is, conditions in which there is absolutely no risk of infection - is also impossible, but one does not, for that reason, perform surgery in a sewer. There is no need to write or teach history in an intellectual sewer either. Paragraph 2 We should have no illusions about this. While some of us may prefer to forget history or to rewrite history to serve some present purpose, the facts of the past, as distinct from the record or perception of the past, cannot be changed. And the consequences of those facts cannot be averted by either ignorance or misrepresentation, whatever its motives. Paragraph 3 In our own time there has been a considerable change in our perception of the scope, scale and content of history. In bygone times, it was considered sufficient if a country, a