I love history; I really do. I never get tired of learning new things and it’s so exciting when everything connects. Sometimes though, I wish I had been left in the dark.
There are certain things you learn growing up that you take to be “historically accurate” that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Pocahontas is on TV right now and I miss the days when I took John Smith to be a romantic adventure seeker. During my junior year of high school, we read some of Smith’s memoirs and I have to say, he was a real ass-hole. Pardon my language, but I can’t think of another way to describe him. He was beyond rude and there definitely wasn’t a film worthy love between him and Pocahontas.
Now this one I knew was historical fiction, but you can’t blame a girl for dreaming: Anastasia. I loved this movie as a kid. Hell, I love it now and I have most of the soundtrack on my iPod. I’ve always loved Russian history and this movie is probably why. However, I always thought it would be nice if one of the Romanovs had made it out alive. That could have been really interesting.
On a less Disney note, let’s talk about the Civil Rights movement. It was always explained to me that the Montgomery Bus Boycott, was famously started when Ms. Rosa Parks took a seat in the white section of a bus because she had been working hard that day and just wanted to rest in a comfortable seat on her way home. This poor seamstress was then imprisoned for refusing to move from her seat. Little did we all know, this was completely STAGED! She had been planning to do this for months! She knew she had a skilled team of NAACP lawyers backing her up and Martin Luther King Jr. vouching for her, which is the only reason she felt confident enough to make such a radical statement on the bus. When my history teacher told me this a few years ago, I felt like the rug had been yanked out from under me.
Ignorance is bliss, I suppose. But the truth is far more valuable.
Sincerely,
Mare
Where Are You Going? Where Have You Been? 