E17: How far are our lives today affected by the past ?

"History is bunk". This saying was attributed to the late Henry Ford, of the motor company. Though untrue, the statement makes the true point that no approach to the past is ever complete. Therefore the influence of the past on our lives is not easy to assess. Neither should we ignore the fact that in many contexts people deliberately reject the past for a variety of reasons. Yet, it remains true that genetic inheritance is a far more powerful influence on our lives than either upbringing or social environment, and that our genetic make-up has been conditioned by the past.

Yet, we are not entirely the victims of our physical inheritance. We learn a great deal from the attitudes of our parents and grandparents. Some we adopt, others we may reject as old-fashioned or irrelevant. The same applies to our hopes for the future. Just because father and grandfather were manual workers, does this prevent us from obtaining a good education and qualifying for a professional or business career ? Thankfully, in the modern world, and in most countries, it does not. More societies are ceasing to be autocracies, and are becoming meritocracies. The restrictions of the past make us even more aware of the opportunities of the present.

The same applies to outmoded class systems. Most countries have had class systems based on rank and wealth, supported by almost unbreakable barriers. Thankfully, this is generally less true today. Society is more flexible. If our grandparents kowtowed to the local dignitaries, we are no longer compelled to do the same. Except in countries which preserve autocratic and caste systems, education and opportunity have abolished these old shibboleths.

Read the whole essay
Source: www.englishdaily626.com