Skip to content
quotesby

About this quote

What does it mean?
History is messy and contested by experts, not a clear moral guide.
In plain terms
History is confusing and argued over by teachers, not a simple story of heroes.
What can you take from it?
Don't expect history to give you clear moral instructions.

Where it applies

  • reading history
  • studying past
  • expecting lessons

Putting it to work

  • question historical narratives
  • seek multiple perspectives

Questions to consider

  • What if history is just noise?
  • How do you find truth in history?

Another view

History can still provide valuable lessons despite its messiness.

More from Wilfrid Sheed

  1. The bad debater never knows that one explanation is better than five.

    Permalink to quote #45
  2. Whether or not Big Brother is watching us, we certainly have to watch him, which may be even worse.

    Permalink to quote #47
  3. The one kind of society that the Church cannot adjust to is no society at all, i.e., a setup where community has become so fragmented that a communal religion …

    Permalink to quote #44

Related quotes

  1. Each one writes history according to his convenience.

    Jose RizalJose Rizal quote #5
  2. The decay of our culture since 1941 can be measured by the fact that academic historians today are no longer interested in historical truth or interested in it…

    Revilo P. OliverRevilo P. Oliver quote #5
  3. Acts themselves alone are history, and these are neither the exclusive property of Hume, Gibbon nor Voltaire, Echard, Rapin, Plutarch, nor Herodotus. Tell me t…

    William BlakeWilliam Blake quote #14