Cultural History
This is the first of the three levels of history where we begin to add our own interpretations and meaning to the larger historical facts. Most frequently, this level is a result of which side of the event you were on. The best way to explain what I mean by cultural history is through examples. Probably the easiest example in American history is the Civil War. We all share the objective facts of the event in common. However, the cultural history that a person derives from the event will most likely be determined by which side of the conflict the person's family was on.
It is one this level where we begin to evolve our basic ideologies and religious beliefs. This is the first level where our common experiences begin to diverge and define us as individual subsets of a larger group. At this point, it becomes easier to see how the effects of the past can be seen in our lives. But, since this level is responsible for basic components of who we are, we often take it for granted. I rarely find myself conscious of my being a Catholic affecting my actions. However, it is one of the basic things that define me. I rarely pause and ask myself, "As an Irish Catholic, what will I do?" However, that consideration is one of the basic facts that underlies all of my actions. I might not be consciously thinking along those lines, but I am impacted by this fundamental cultural orientation every day.
We know that certain cultural experiences like slavery and the Holocaust can't help but define basic ideologies. Any person whose history includes captivity, torture, death and dehumanization is going to inevitably be impacted by this past. When we read such powerful stories as the ones on the links in this paragraph we begin to see how this could be true. I read the slave and the Holocaust accounts from a perspective that never had to endure either. I can't imagine if the story was my story. I don't mean to suggest that these stories mean nothing unless they happened to someone in a person's family. Clearly, they provide meaning for us all. However, there is no way that a slave story wouldn't hold special meaning to an African American.
It is clear how this cultural historical awareness effected both Denver and Art. They each had many of their beliefs predetermined by their beliefs in different cultural systems. For them the effects are more obvious than for us, but the same still applies to our lives.
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