I figured there’d be a higher focus on US History over there ^~^ We do go through the Mayflower, the war of independence and the Civil War here, but hardly as deep as I’m sure you did! But interesting, interesting! Yeah, we actually have local, Norwegian history in the Norwegian class instead, blending history with language studies. It’s pretty convenient.
My favorite historical event? Hmm… I actually find the Mongols super interesting, even if I don’t get to teach it nearly as much as I want. Genghis Khan is such a strange figure; simultaneously the worst mass murderer in history as well as the most modern ruler prior to… The 1960’s. Did you know the Mongols had full freedom of speech, religion, women’s rights actually existed to some degree, racism was against the law, and they allowed anyone to become a prominent member of Mongol society. It was also the safest country to live in… In history. Comparatively safe to the modern world! Probably safer than the US is today! I find it fascinating.
But outside of the Mongols, I enjoy teaching about the Age of Colonies, thanks to how politicized it is. Since I’m strictly disallowed to influence my students politically, and since we have a high focus on teaching students to think for themselves, I find it most fascinating to see what thoughts, ideas and conclusions my students arrive at. Given that there’s generally two sides to the period; the left-leaning side that considers it a vile, exploitative period where white, European evil showed its colors, and the right-leaning side that considers it a necessary evil to spread the modern world to those less fortunate, and that the colonies were abolished to hastily without assigning a proper, safe government. Whichever side one falls in, I think it’s sweet and interesting to see why my students think what they think of it. Very controversial, but a truly interesting subject nonetheless!
As for what I love to learn about myself, I’ve come to find pre-Black Death medieval Europe to be really interesting lately. People often label it as a dark and terrible time, but I find that a mistake. Aside from the wars, it was a period of relative safety and comfort, where everyone shared in the same religious belief and, as proven by the lack of philosophical progress, it was a good time to be alive. That might sound odd though! Hmm, I also find contemporary philosophy to be interesting, and despite being a lesbian feminist, I actually really find the men’s right movement to be fascinating and important.
Genereally speaking, I find most historical, philosophical, arts and literary subjects you might think of to be super interesting and valuable to learn about ^~^ And my students often teach me about things I’ve not read much about ^~^
D’aww, you’ve been a joy to speak with as well!
