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题目:ISSUE48 - "The study of history places too much emphasis on individuals. The most significant events and trends in history were made possible not by the famous few, but by groups of people whose identities have long been forgotten."
字数:554 用时:00:43:12 日期:2009-3-1 23:19:12
Whenever time you turn out a history book, you will find the major part of the historical records is talking about the brilliant stories of a few famous people. However, here I agree with the author's claim that the most significant events and trend of history are made by groups of people. Therefore, sometimes, it is unfair to forget these people who also contribute to the advancement of history.
Admittedly, in some areas such as art and science, a group of key individuals have played a more crucial role than other common people, and hence they indeed deserve the all of credits. It is Newton who laid the Three Fundamental Laws of Motion, leading to the new Law of Gravitation and established the foundation of calculus. It is Einstein who put forward the theory of Relativity, and gave a perfect interpretation of the photoelectric effect. It is Beethoven who left us countless great compositions; it is Shakespeare who contributed to the English literature. We have to concede that those famous people worth our attention and should be remembered forever in our heart.
However, in many cases, the most significant events in history were made by a group of people; thus, it is unfair to give the entire spotlight to few of them. For example, during the medieval period, the feudalism in Europe was still rife: the land was owned by few lords, who forced common people to work as bounded labor. At that time, several painters guided the movement of Renaissance, including Leonardo Da Winci, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Rafael, and so on; all of them playing inevitable roles in history that bring new minds and ideas to people. Yet, today, merely Leonardo and Michelangelo are world-wide renowned by most people. In fact, it is the cumulative efforts of all the members who have sparked revolution. So they are all worth the reputations.
In addition, the famous individuals would have been unable to succeed in their daring endeavors without the supports and participation of fellow members. Though the decisions were make by the key individuals, but they were accomplished by those numerous forgettable people. Take the Chinese famous building, Great Wall, as an instance. It is the first emperor of dynasty Qing who decided to construct it, nonetheless, if without the thousands upon thousands labor forces, how can the great marvel be established? Another example is the Mahatma Gandhi. His brilliant spirit and great leadership cannot be estimated, yet, the achievement of freedom of India would have been impossible without the sacrifices of the martyrs who adhered to Gandhi's principals. Similarly, without the scarifies of the soldier on the battle field, it is hard for Britain to defend itself, no matter how many efforts the Winston Churchill had paid to encourage his public. But those identities of people who are behind the scenes never account for a place in the history book.
In sum, I concede that without the famous but few people's efforts, a significant amount of inventions and achievements cannot be made in human history; however, those groups of people who played indispensable roles behind these attainments yet whose identities have long been forgotten are all heroes as well. In the final analyze, the study of history cannot ignores the importance of all they people who have contributed to our society as a whole. |
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