The idea that history is written primarily by the “winners” is an interesting argument. Surprisingly, many use this stance to rob history of its validity. While it may be true in some cases that historical accounts have been told primarily through the lenses of the world’s more dominant/advanced civilizations, the objectivity of history has not been ruined as a result. It is true that each person cannot help but view the world with a bias particular to his upbringing or background. This simply means that the facts of history may be conveyed with preference or more attention to specific people groups. In turn, it does not mean that facts have been distorted or eliminated – simply expressed sometimes with an authorial bias.
With that being said, facts are facts. Simply because a text is not perfect or account is not perfect, that does not mean that we should disregard its validity completely. Rather, we should be encouraged to investigate multiple sources and accounts of history so as to discover the truth of our world’s past. In a way, this ensures that the facts we study are in fact accurate by forcing us to make conclusions and pull details from a variety of sources. In addition, we should stray from the idea that historical accounts are invalid simply because of the value that history brings us as citizens of the globe. After all, history is not simply an account of events, but rather an explanation of the way the world works today, a guidebook to its cultures, and a warning for the present generation to prevent it from repeating the past. Therefore, simply by nature, history plays an important role in not only reminding society where it has come from, but in shaping the future as well. Because of the gravity of this resource it would be both pitiful and imprudent to disregard the facts of history based on the suspicion of authorial bias.
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