My first encounter with Helen Keller was
when I was in first grade through a comic on her life. Reading comics on lives
of historical figures was a trend at that time, and along many of the comics, Keller’s
has always been my favorite. As a child, I remember being awed by her strength for
survival and her firm convictions. Despite the negative aspects that the
author delivers, I still believe that the hardships and endeavors that she
faced remains the same and that there are many things that we can get out of
her experience even if she became a radical socialist in her later life. However,
it is true how the other side of her life remained in dark, when all this should have been taught in history class. At the same time, I was also struck by the
author’s offensive attitude towards Socialism. Inside the text, James strongly
opposes Keller’s later actions intending to bring about radical change in the
American society. From a non-American perspective, I believe that his way of
delivery showed excessive hatred towards Socialism. Well, I suppose that this
viewpoint is natural for an American citizen.
Next, the chapter discusses about the
former American president Woodrow Wilson. I have always related Woodrow Wilson
with peace since he devoted in establishing the League of Nations, which led
the way in receiving the Noble Peace Prize. However, the historically concealed
points that James exposed totally changed the image. Although the author’s
suggestions were mostly standpoints of the social minorities (because racial
materials were James’ field of study), facts about his diplomatic policy and
ideas based on white supremacy were surprising enough to turn down my peaceful
picture of him.
Until I started reading this book, I thought
that “heroification” of historical figures was not as bad. Good image in the
past raises love towards the nation which can contribute to nationalism. Moreover,
it also creates an inspiring role model which people can always look up to. On
the other hand, the influence that it causes can pose a negative effect on our
present. The present world will never improve unless we learn from the past
because the relationship between past and present equals to the cause and
effect relationship. In this sense, text books aren't doing a great job in
providing students with the truth. If we want a better future, I guess we have
to get started with giving out this book to every single student to spread the
reality of history, instead of attending crappy history classes filled with
made-up stories.
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