While I was traveling in Europe last summer, our tour guide made a profound statement that has stuck with me. She was in the habit of telling all of us very long and involved stories about the history of the regions we visited. Most people found these periods during our bus rides to sleep, but I found myself listening intently. It was because of this alertness that I was able to catch what she said: She actually never liked history while she was in school, but as she got into the tourism industry and traveled herself, she found that history was fascinating because it told a visitor how the region he or she was in got to be the way it was. And this is precisely what was keeping me awake! History - I could take it or leave it. But, when it came to "How did Hungary get to be Hungary? Didn't it have something to do with settlers from Russia? And wasn't it part of some bigger empire at some point?" I suddenly found that I LOVED history. Basically, I hadn't seen the point of learning all those dates and events back in high school and college, but now I see their significance. I think math is like that for some people, although I suppose math isn't quite as relevant to "everyday" situations like travel as history is.
Regardless, I was further reminded of the significance of history and how time changes one's capacity to comprehend various pieces of knowledge. This friendly reminder came from none other than Charles Dickens. I have a copy of A Tale of Two Cities looking all pretty on my bookshelf, and in the angst and restlessness of the past few weeks I decided to throw aside all books I have that want to make me Think or Learn or Dream and instead pick up one which is simply to entertain (and isn't full of sensuality). Perhaps many would find it odd to read Dickens for pleasure, but that's just how I am.
And I must admit that it's been a real joy to absorb the print on the pages of the old book. I have only read it once before, and that was in 1994 or 95. I see now that this book is a bit like the history "lesson" I received last summer. I KNOW that I read it those many years ago, but I am quite sure I didn't get nearly as much out of it then as I am getting now! Some of it is a better appreciation of the history of the late 1700s (although that can't be the majority of it, because I'm still no history buff!), and some of it is purely that I understand Dickens' language and highly appreciate his use of words and symbols. And no longer are the symbols items I have to store away in my memory bank to recall for an exam later in the semester! No...now, all of the literary wonder of Dickens can be enjoyed simply because it is enjoyable.
Hey...why didn't they teach me that in school?
No comments:
Post a Comment