--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: History isn't really about the past…" description: "\"History isn't really about the past - settling old scores. It's about defining the present and who we are.\" — Ken Burns" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e5/ken-burns-9897_defining_history-isn-t-really-about-the-past-sett_479438.jpg" --- # History isn't really about the past - settling old scores… ![“History isn't really about the past - settling old scores. It's about defining the present and who we are.” quote by Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e5/ken-burns-9897_defining_history-isn-t-really-about-the-past-sett_479438.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e5/ken-burns-9897_defining_history-isn-t-really-about-the-past-sett_479438.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e5/ken-burns-9897_defining_history-isn-t-really-about-the-past-sett_479438.jpg) > “History isn't really about the past - settling old scores. It's about defining the present and who we are.” [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. History shapes identity by interpreting past events to define present values and self‑understanding. **In simple terms:** History defines who we are now. Key Takeaway Use history to shape your present. Themes identity interpretation culture Mood thoughtful reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - education - political discourse - personal reflection Key Concepts narrative collective memory self‑concept Questions to Reflect On - How does your view of history affect your actions? - What present narratives do you create? A Different Perspective History can be biased, limiting true understanding. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) ## Related quotes > [“Our past may be somewhat responsible for defining who we are at present, but it does not need to define our future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-guillebeau/our-past-may-be-somewhat-responsible-for-defining-who-we-are-at/) [Chris Guillebeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-guillebeau/) > [I always believed that I was bigger than the box people put me in. That was what really made me see past the nos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-consani/i-always-believed-that-i-was-bigger-than-the-box-people-put-me-in/) [Alex Consani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-consani/) > [“Is Your Past Really Your Past At All?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sybil-shae/is-your-past-really-your-past-at-all/) Sybil Shae > [We can carry the burden of hurt throughout our lives. We can make the hurt that we have experienced the defining aspect of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/we-can-carry-the-burden-of-hurt-throughout-our-lives-we-can-make-the/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [If we stop defining each other by what we are not and start defining ourselves by who we are we can all be freer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-watson/if-we-stop-defining-each-other-by-what-we-are-not-and-start-defining/) [Emma Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-watson/) > [I think we continually need to understand how important an event the war was - how defining, how central to who we are. Everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/i-think-we-continually-need-to-understand-how-important-an-event-the/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [Good history is a question of survival. Without any past, we will deprive ourselves of the defining impression of our being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/good-history-is-a-question-of-survival-without-any-past-we-will/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [My favorite thing is talking to people about history - that's what I like doing. The sort of history I do isn't just for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-worsley/my-favorite-thing-is-talking-to-people-about-history-that-s-what-i/) [Lucy Worsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-worsley/) > [I feel very strongly that history is about everything. It isn't just about politics or the military or social issues. If art, music, engineering,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/i-feel-very-strongly-that-history-is-about-everything-it-isn-t-just/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [“A lot of what we know to be history isn’t…it serves a purpose. Events are exaggerated, heroes fabricated, goals are rewritten to appear more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-penny/a-lot-of-what-we-know-to-be-history-isn-t-it-serves-a-purpose-events/) [Louise Penny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-penny/) > [“History isn't all fact--it's just the story the victors tell to keep themselves in power. And it's been a slow revision. The more time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-anastasiu/history-isn-t-all-fact-it-s-just-the-story-the-victors-tell-to-keep/) [Heather Anastasiu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-anastasiu/) > [The most important things to remember about back story are that (a) everyone has a history and (b) most of it isn’t very interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-most-important-things-to-remember-about-back-story-are-that-a/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [History isn't just what happened, but what happened to whom and why and what would have been different if the cast of characters had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/history-isn-t-just-what-happened-but-what-happened-to-whom-and-why/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [History ... isn't simply what has happened. It's a judgment on what has happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/history-isn-t-simply-what-has-happened-it-s-a-judgment-on-what-has/) [Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/) > [That's one of the central problems of history, isn't it, sir? The question of subjective versus objective interpretation, the fact that we need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/that-s-one-of-the-central-problems-of-history-isn-t-it-sir-the/) [Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/) ## More by Ken Burns > [Good history is a question of survival. Without any past, we will deprive ourselves of the defining impression of our being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/good-history-is-a-question-of-survival-without-any-past-we-will/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [Write: write letters. Keep journals. Besides your children, there is no surer way of achieving immortality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/write-write-letters-keep-journals-besides-your-children-there-is-no/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [By its very nature, no one person can ever be the center of Jazz.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/by-its-very-nature-no-one-person-can-ever-be-the-center-of-jazz/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [The genius of our country is improvisation, and jazz reflects that. It's our great contribution to the arts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/the-genius-of-our-country-is-improvisation-and-jazz-reflects-that-it/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [The reason why you do history, and particularly why you do war, is that you want to make sure that in the next war,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/the-reason-why-you-do-history-and-particularly-why-you-do-war-is-that/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [In a sense I've made the same film over and over again. In all of them I've asked, 'Who are we as Americans?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/in-a-sense-i-ve-made-the-same-film-over-and-over-again-in-all-of-them/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [I think we too often make choices based on the safety of cynicism, and what we're lead to is a life not fully lived.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/i-think-we-too-often-make-choices-based-on-the-safety-of-cynicism-and/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [Louis Armstrong is quite simply the most important person in American music. He is to 20th century music (I did not say jazz) what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/louis-armstrong-is-quite-simply-the-most-important-person-in-american/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [People tend to forget that the word "history" contains the word "story".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/people-tend-to-forget-that-the-word-history-contains-the-word-story/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [We strain to listen to the ghosts and echoes of our inexpressibly wise past, and we have an obligation to maintain these places, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/we-strain-to-listen-to-the-ghosts-and-echoes-of-our-inexpressibly/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [It follows the seasons, beginning each year with the fond expectancy of springtime and ending with the hard facts of autumn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/it-follows-the-seasons-beginning-each-year-with-the-fond-expectancy/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [“Jackie Robinson stole home and he's safe."...Nobody could hurt him again. He wouldn't hear the name-calling. He would only hear the cheers and somehow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/jackie-robinson-stole-home-and-he-s-safe-nobody-could-hurt-him-again/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [I can understand why some of these drummers and bass players become cult figures with all of their equipment and the incredible amount of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/i-can-understand-why-some-of-these-drummers-and-bass-players-become/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [You know, you meet some people, and do a lot of interviews, and you come across a Buck O'Neill and you know you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/you-know-you-meet-some-people-and-do-a-lot-of-interviews-and-you-come/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [History is malleable. A new cache of diaries can shed new light, and archeological evidence can challenge our popular assumptions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/history-is-malleable-a-new-cache-of-diaries-can-shed-new-light-and/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) [Explore all 69 Ken Burns quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) ## More Defining quotes > [One defining symptom of decadence is a fondness for vast and nonsensical extravagance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-silverberg/one-defining-symptom-of-decadence-is-a-fondness-for-vast-and/) [Robert Silverberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-silverberg/) > [Good history is a question of survival. Without any past, we will deprive ourselves of the defining impression of our being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-burns/good-history-is-a-question-of-survival-without-any-past-we-will/) [Ken Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-burns/) > [ I never left my roots. You can identify me as someone that didn't become high and mighty. Humility is a defining \[trait\] all of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serena-williams/i-never-left-my-roots-you-can-identify-me-as-someone-that-didn-t/) [Serena Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serena-williams/) > [I think the word 'soul' - it depends on what you define by 'soul.' If you're defining it as a mystical aura that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-nicolelis/i-think-the-word-soul-it-depends-on-what-you-define-by-soul-if-you-re/) [Miguel Nicolelis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-nicolelis/) > [“There are no defining moments. There are only your moments to define.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-dowd/there-are-no-defining-moments-there-are-only-your-moments-to-define/) Thomas B Dowd > [My journey has been a long one and has still got a long way to go. I think we are so used to defining…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-corrin/my-journey-has-been-a-long-one-and-has-still-got-a-long-way-to-go-i/) [Emma Corrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-corrin/) > [“Defining the Renaissance Man “A man can do all that he will.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-griffiths-and-eric-elfman/defining-the-renaissance-man-a-man-can-do-all-that-he-will/) Scott Griffiths and Eric Elfman > [The defining aspects of westerns are still pretty much in place - namely landscape and conflict. In other books the conflict can be internal,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-crook/the-defining-aspects-of-westerns-are-still-pretty-much-in-place/) [Elizabeth Crook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-crook/) > [Our concepts structure what we perceive, how we get around in the world and how we relate to other people. Our conceptual system thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lakoff/our-concepts-structure-what-we-perceive-how-we-get-around-in-the/) [George Lakoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lakoff/) > [It's imprecise and insufficient, defining the homosexual as a person whose gender expression is at odds with his or her sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-bechdel/it-s-imprecise-and-insufficient-defining-the-homosexual-as-a-person/) [Alison Bechdel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-bechdel/) > [Modern societies accepted the treasures and the power offered them by science. But they have not accepted - they have scarcely even heard -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-monod/modern-societies-accepted-the-treasures-and-the-power-offered-them-by/) [Jacques Monod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-monod/) > [I met people on college campuses who were defining themselves as genderqueer to express revolutionary feelings, or to communicate their individuality; they were gender…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-solomon/i-met-people-on-college-campuses-who-were-defining-themselves-as/) [Andrew Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-solomon/) > [Using less of the Earth’s resources more efficiently and productively in a circular economy and making the transition from carbon-based fuels to renewable energies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-rifkin/using-less-of-the-earth-s-resources-more-efficiently-and-productively/) [Jeremy Rifkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-rifkin/) > [Autonomy means women defining themselves and the values by which they will live, and beginning to think of institutional arrangements which will order their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerda-lerner/autonomy-means-women-defining-themselves-and-the-values-by-which-they/) [Gerda Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerda-lerner/) > [I think TARP was the most defining vote since I've been in Congress. It was wrong. You don't nationalize private - it was wrong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-gohmert/i-think-tarp-was-the-most-defining-vote-since-i-ve-been-in-congress/) [Louie Gohmert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-gohmert/) Browse all 544 Defining quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "History isn't really about the past - settling old scores. 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