As mentioned in my most recent post we have recently learning about the concept of history, so for this post we have been tasked with a “snap shot autobiography”. Pretty much we were supposed to think of three of the most significant events in our lives, along with our births. Then we were supposed to tell the story of these events, along making a visual of them.
So for my four significant events I chose:
1. My Birth
2. Moving from Texas to British Columbia
3. My 3rd heart surgery
4. Getting my first job
This assignment originally made me think of all the Draw My Life videos I have seen on YouTube over the years so I decided to try a similar format for this assignment. I knew most people in the class were making photo essays, or similar visuals based on pictures which I considered doing as well, but then I realized I didn’t have too many pictures that related to my chosen stories so I decided to try this format out.
So now, let’s go over the historical significance of these in my life. I never really think of my life as history, but when I got assigned this I realized that while maybe nothing in my life is historically significant in the big picture, there are lots of little things in my life which hold huge significance.
1. My birth
So I chose this event, obviously because it was mandatory, but also, while for a minute I thought I knew nothing about my birth, then I remembered the story about the doctor my mom thought looked like a movie star. This event in obviously quite significant to me because, well it was the day my life started. But it was also significant to my parents. Maybe not as significant as when my older sister was born because they already had a kid, but any new kid is a big thing for parents so that’s pretty cool! The evidence of this event lies mainly in memories, but also in a birth certificate (which, fun fact, is signed by George W. Bush). For continuity and Change, this event mainly changed my parents lives in the sense that now they had a 2 year old and an infant to care for. My birth has had many consequences, which consist of pretty much everything I have ever done. All in all, while on the big scale of thing my birth isn’t significant, it was to me, and those around me.
2. Moving from Texas
Moving from Texas holds significance to me because I can’t imagine what my life should have been like if I hadn’t. I can imagine who I’d now be if I had grown up in Texas, and I find it really weird to think about. Moving to Texas really changed up my family’s life. The temperature is much colder in Vancouver than Austin, but even more so, our lives got upended. We had a daily routine, a house we had been living in for a while and friends, when suddenly we had to move. It was a welcome change due to the fact my parents are both Canadian, but moving is always hard when you move without a place to move into other than a temporary apartment. I don’t really remember this event, but I am honestly so thankful it happened, although I love Texas and still feel connected to it.
3. Heart Surgery
While I don’t fully remember this, I still consider this one of the most significant events in my life because of the impact it had on my health. I was not a healthy child before my surgery, so I consider this to be important because of how it changed that. Without this surgery I wouldn’t be able to be the active person I am today, and my life would be much different.
I interviewed my mom about her memory of me being in the hospital, and of course it was a bit different than mine. For her it was kind of stressful and hard, while for me I just remember the fun aspects on it. We do remember the same things though, maybe because she has told me stories which have impacted the story I tell.
4. First Job
Getting my job was more significant to me than it was to anyone else. It made me feel much more independent, and has helped me with the way I present myself. It changed my life by making me much busier but has been a good thing because of how much better I have become at talking to people because of my experiences with the people I deal with at work.
I found this assignment actually quite interesting. I have never looked at events in my life as history, and it was fun trying to apply the six lenses mentioned in my last post to these events. I hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about me and seeing what I consider significant in my life and why.
Congrats to my PLP 12 class! We recently did our English 12 provincial exam, and now that English is over it’s time to move on to history. Before we start studying 20th century history our class was tasked with figuring out: What is history? We were split into groups and then given some time to find 3 definitions of history per group. Each group was then tasked with creating a sentence to define history and then present our findings to the class. These are the definitions we came up with:
1. History is a biography of humanity and our past chronicles made up of what we remember, not what we thought.
2. History is often the worst parts of the past that we are able to recognize in the present.
3. History is a study of the past looked at by a new perspective, often written by the victors
4. History is a collection of interpreted, undefined events that gives purpose to our lives and our future
5. The study of history tells a story of past events based on knowledgeable investigation
6. History is a study of the past through a narration of events which in turn allows for a dialogue between the past and present, to further establish our knowledge of people and major events.
From these six definitions our class was able to get a better idea of what history can be defined as. To further our understanding each group was then assigned a historical lens which we had to learn how to apply. After becoming masters of using our specific lens (hopefully) we then had to teach the rest of the class our lens, and give them an example of how to apply it. By the end of the presentations the class had learned about all six lenses.
My group consisted of Luciano, Spencer and Jackson and we were focusing on ethical judgement. We then applied this lens to the Kent State shootings.
The other lenses that we learned about from the other groups’ presentations were Historical Significance, Evidence and Interpretation, continuity and change, cause and consequence and historical perspective. Through applying these six lenses we should be able to gain a better understanding of historical events. To explain these lenses to you I made little summaries of the six lenses. I used an app called Canva to edit pages of a booklet. This app was actually really cool and I enjoyed using it quite a bit. I’ve actually had it on my iPad for a while, so I’m not sure why I have’t used it until now. Anyways, I made pages of a book, but they’re just in picture form right now, so imagine they are pages of a booklet as you are reading them.
Now that we know about the six lenses it’s time to apply them! So in this post, I’m going to be practicing by using these lenses to gain a better understanding of the attack on Pearl Harbour in 1941.
1. Historical Significance
The attack on Pearl Harbour was considered notable at the time of the event due to the fact U.S. wasn’t in the war until this attack. This event is what ended up causing U.S. to join the war, and they played a huge role in the rest of the war. This event is considered historically significant because of these consequences, and along with that, it has ended up being a patriotic symbol for the U.S.A.
After December 7th, 1941, Americans felt more like they were a part of their country and their sense of patriotism grew. They were all fighting for the same thing, and the attack on Pearl Harbour ended up uniting them.
The memorial for Pearl Harbour is visited by people all over the world who are hoping to remember, respect and learn about the events that took place during the attack. Americans look back on Pearl Harbour with both a sense of sadness and nationalism.
2. Evidence and Interpretation
Through looking into this event I have been mainly looking at secondary sources which have already put together the information from primary sources to explain what happened. When looking for secondary sources I have been careful to find trustworthy websites, rather than just blogs like this one. When looking for primary sources though, I found a gallery of front page newspaper articles from right after the attack on the Washington Post. These articles show the initial reactions of the public to the attacks which is interesting when getting an idea of the event. These articles are trustworthy because they are public newspapers. While there may be some bias and opinions in them, the facts should all be trustworthy.
3. Continuity and Change
While Pearl Harbour after the attack turned into a war zone, due to the natural beauty of the Hawaiian Islands, Oahu is a populatar tourist destination. Pearl Harbour has become a memorial for the attack, which always has tourists from all over the world going through it.
One lasting change after the attack is Japan ended up losing its oil source after China sided with the U.S.A., which is still in effect today. One major change we could consider from the attack, which made a turning point in history is the fact that this event caused the U.S.A. to join WWII. We will consider this change in the next lens, cause and consequence.
4. Cause and Consequence
Instead of thinking about why forcing U.S.A. joining the war wouldn’t be a good idea, Japan attacked Pearl Harbour, thinking of ways to destroy American fleets and conquer the Philippines and Malaya.
Instead, due to the attack, FDR officially declared war on Japan, joining WWII. Their entry into the war is a huge consequence of this event, due to how the war ended for Japan. If the U.S.A. hadn’t joined WWII, the atomic bombs likely wouldn’t have been dropped on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. While Japan had intended to take out an American fleet, they hadn’t planned for the unintentional, long term consequences of the attack.
5. Historical Perspective
Due to the oil embargo Japan felt an attack on Pearl Harbour was necessary. The attack was part of a colonial conflict in Asia, not just an attack on the U.S.A. At the time, Japan felt the attack was something they had to do, and would be the right move which is why they did it. During war times critical decisions have to be made quickly, and this attack was one which they felt would be helpful to stage. Looking at what I know in the present, and the facts I have found from the past, it is clear that these attacks are what Japan thought would be best for their country.
6. Ethical Judgement
While what happened in Pearl Harbour on December 7th, 1941 deeply saddens me, I understand that it is what the Japanese felt would be the best move for their country at the time. The troops who attacked Pearl Harbour were only following orders, and during war times, unfortunately acts of violence are seen as a necessity to bring your country pride.
I hope you enjoyed this blog post on the six historical lenses, and my example of how to apply them to an event. Maybe next time when you’re learning about a historical event you can apply these same lenses!
