--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: From the very beginning, history wasn't…" description: "\"From the very beginning, history wasn't content simply to be nostalgic fairytales; it wanted to make you think.\" — Simon Schama" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac7/simon-schama-4492_beginning_from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-c_1111006.jpg" --- # From the very beginning, history wasn't content simply to… ![“From the very beginning, history wasn't content simply to be nostalgic fairytales; it wanted to make you think.” quote by Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac7/simon-schama-4492_beginning_from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-c_1111006.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac7/simon-schama-4492_beginning_from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-c_1111006.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac7/simon-schama-4492_beginning_from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-c_1111006.jpg) > “From the very beginning, history wasn't content simply to be nostalgic fairytales; it wanted to make you think.” [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. History is not just nostalgic storytelling; it is meant to provoke thought and challenge perceptions. **In simple terms:** History should make you think, not just reminisce. Key Takeaway Seek critical insight from the past. Themes history education critical thinking memory narrative Mood reflective inquisitive inspirational Type philosophical educational historical When to use this quote - teaching - public discourse - personal growth Key Concepts nostalgia reflection intellectual challenge cultural identity Questions to Reflect On - How does history shape current beliefs? - What lessons are we missing? A Different Perspective History can be used to romanticize. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beginning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning/) [Beginning History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning-history-395067/) [Content](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/content/) [Fairytales Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairytales-wanted-2960274/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [History Wasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history-wasn-470974/) [Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make/) [Make Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-think-378709/) [Nostalgic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgic/) [Nostalgic Fairytales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgic-fairytales-2960275/) [Simply](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simply/) [Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) ## Related quotes > [The history of the Indians begins with the arrival of the Europeans. The history of the People begins with the beginning of the history…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-trudell/the-history-of-the-indians-begins-with-the-arrival-of-the-europeans/) [John Trudell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-trudell/) > [If patriarchy had a specific beginning in history, it can also have an end](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-mies/if-patriarchy-had-a-specific-beginning-in-history-it-can-also-have-an/) [Maria Mies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-mies/) > [the beginning of my history is - love. It is the beginning of every man and every woman's history, if they are only frank…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-corelli/the-beginning-of-my-history-is-love-it-is-the-beginning-of-every-man/) [Marie Corelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-corelli/) > [Since the early beginning of history, India has been the Klondyke of the world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/since-the-early-beginning-of-history-india-has-been-the-klondyke-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Their history wasn’t so far off the mean track, they were going through what a thousand other civilizations had gone through, and no doubt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-m-banks/their-history-wasn-t-so-far-off-the-mean-track-they-were-going/) [Iain M. Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-m-banks/) > [In the India I was growing up in, history wasn't really a wise career option. People would joke and say, 'History's okay, but what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amish-tripathi/in-the-india-i-was-growing-up-in-history-wasn-t-really-a-wise-career/) [Amish Tripathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amish-tripathi/) > [If anybody had a sense of history, it wasn't me, I'll tell you that. I, I was just enjoying life and, and making a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cosimo-matassa/if-anybody-had-a-sense-of-history-it-wasn-t-me-i-ll-tell-you-that-i-i/) [Cosimo Matassa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cosimo-matassa/) > [“I have the worst kind of history—a non history. I wasn’t born poor, oppressed, rich, famous, or any other such extreme. I was born…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-have-the-worst-kind-of-history-a-non-history-i-wasn-t-born-poor/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“Demond’s family history wasn’t so different from my own, did that mean we were living the same story over and over again, down through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/demond-s-family-history-wasn-t-so-different-from-my-own-did-that-mean/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [To do something for someone or something you loved-England or Shakespeare or a dog or the Hodbins or history-wasn't a sacrifice at all. Even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/to-do-something-for-someone-or-something-you-loved-england-or/) [Connie Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/) > [In history, she wasn't there while we reenacted the Lincoln-Douglas Debate, and Mr. Lee tried to make me argue the Pro-Slavery side, most likely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/in-history-she-wasn-t-there-while-we-reenacted-the-lincoln-douglas/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [I was often filled with excitement to be given a platform to showcase Black history to others. I never questioned why Black history wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judi-love/i-was-often-filled-with-excitement-to-be-given-a-platform-to-showcase/) [Judi Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judi-love/) > [In the 1970s, family history wasn't yet thought of a serious field for study. I was terrified of being laughed at by other historians.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-coontz/in-the-1970s-family-history-wasn-t-yet-thought-of-a-serious-field-for/) [Stephanie Coontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-coontz/) > [“History wasn't made without taking risks, that much he knew. So maybe sometimes you had to take risks to write it, too?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/history-wasn-t-made-without-taking-risks-that-much-he-knew-so-maybe/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [Families of privilege and money would have harps in their parlors, and their cultured daughters would learn to play. It's got such a strange…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-newsom/families-of-privilege-and-money-would-have-harps-in-their-parlors-and/) [Joanna Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-newsom/) ## More by Simon Schama > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Taxation, the very thing that had triggered the British civil wars, would do so again, this time in America. The taxes may have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/taxation-the-very-thing-that-had-triggered-the-british-civil-wars/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Anyone can write an academic piece directed at other academics. To write something that delivers an argument and a gripping storyline to someone's granny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/anyone-can-write-an-academic-piece-directed-at-other-academics-to/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [In its Greek origins, historia meant inquiry, and from Thucydides onwards, the past has been studied to understand its connections with the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/in-its-greek-origins-historia-meant-inquiry-and-from-thucydides/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Jewish history turns out not to be an either/or story - as in, either pure Judaism detached from its surroundings or else assimilation -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/jewish-history-turns-out-not-to-be-an-either-or-story-as-in-either/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Growing up in Britain as a rather loose Jew, the two things that didn't belong together were freedom and religious intensity. In America, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/growing-up-in-britain-as-a-rather-loose-jew-the-two-things-that-didn/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [In the end, history, especially British history with its succession of thrilling illuminations, should be, as all her most accomplished narrators have promised, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/in-the-end-history-especially-british-history-with-its-succession-of/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [From 1789, perhaps even before that, it had been the willingness of politicians to exploit either the threat or the fact of violence that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/from-1789-perhaps-even-before-that-it-had-been-the-willingness-of/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The default mode of modern writing about art is to despise any notion of singularity as so much overheated genius-fetishism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-default-mode-of-modern-writing-about-art-is-to-despise-any-notion/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The synagogues of late antiquity and the early medieval period were built around imagery: imagery of remembering the Temple, but also of the celestial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-synagogues-of-late-antiquity-and-the-early-medieval-period-were/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [At 11, 12, I thought I was clumsy, ugly, a mess, an unappealing person, but I did have the gift of the gab. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/at-11-12-i-thought-i-was-clumsy-ugly-a-mess-an-unappealing-person-but/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [We seem wired to grieve with greenery. Allowing the dead to dissolve into the earth, to become part of the cycle of the seasons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/we-seem-wired-to-grieve-with-greenery-allowing-the-dead-to-dissolve/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The older I get, the more I want to do. It beats death, decay or golf in unfortunate trousers. Peace and quiet depress me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-older-i-get-the-more-i-want-to-do-it-beats-death-decay-or-golf-in/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [The Elephantine papyri - written as some of the books of the Bible are being written - is true social and legal documentation, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-elephantine-papyri-written-as-some-of-the-books-of-the-bible-are/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) [Explore all 109 Simon Schama quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) ## More Beginning quotes > [At the very beginning, I was a page at Letterman, and I freelanced for any place that would let me write any word. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-schwartz/at-the-very-beginning-i-was-a-page-at-letterman-and-i-freelanced-for/) [Ben Schwartz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-schwartz/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Every Finish Line is the beginning of a new race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-finish-line-is-the-beginning-of-a-new-race/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Always keep the smile, because the smile is the beginning of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-imad/always-keep-the-smile-because-the-smile-is-the-beginning-of-love/) [Adam Imad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-imad/) > [We are beginning to see intimations of this in the implantation of computer devices into the human body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kurzweil/we-are-beginning-to-see-intimations-of-this-in-the-implantation-of/) [Ray Kurzweil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kurzweil/) > [The only vocal training I had was playing with a tape recorder as a kid, and you know, doing the beginning of the 'Lone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-buffer/the-only-vocal-training-i-had-was-playing-with-a-tape-recorder-as-a/) [Michael Buffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-buffer/) > [January is the beginning of a new year for us in the Western world. Let us give to God what belongs to him: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-white/january-is-the-beginning-of-a-new-year-for-us-in-the-western-world/) [Paula White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-white/) > [In the beginning, if you look at those early label albums of the Chicks, we didn't write all that much. We had an A&R…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martie-maguire/in-the-beginning-if-you-look-at-those-early-label-albums-of-the/) [Martie Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martie-maguire/) > [You need more than a beginning if you're going to start a book. If all you have is a beginning, then once you've written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-need-more-than-a-beginning-if-you-re-going-to-start-a-book-if-all/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [When there is a mission before you, you see it from its beginning to its conclusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-white/when-there-is-a-mission-before-you-you-see-it-from-its-beginning-to/) [Jesse White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-white/) > [When God made the world, all things began with him. Life, death, it all began when he said so. That includes you and me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manae-poet-of-carisis/when-god-made-the-world-all-things-began-with-him-life-death-it-all/) [Manae Poet Of Carisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manae-poet-of-carisis/) > [From the beginning at Intel, we planned on being big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-noyce/from-the-beginning-at-intel-we-planned-on-being-big/) [Robert Noyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-noyce/) > [In the very beginning, Yelp started as a service where we really didn't think people would write reviews for fun. The whole concept of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-stoppelman/in-the-very-beginning-yelp-started-as-a-service-where-we-really-didn/) [Jeremy Stoppelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-stoppelman/) > [Some projects feel like the stars are aligning for them from the very beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-smith/some-projects-feel-like-the-stars-are-aligning-for-them-from-the-very/) [Gregory Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-smith/) > [Do not judge me by my beginning, Only by my end, Nor by the path I took, But where it led me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacklyn-h-lucas/do-not-judge-me-by-my-beginning-only-by-my-end-nor-by-the-path-i-took/) [Jacklyn H Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacklyn-h-lucas/) [Browse all 3,566 Beginning quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginning/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "From the very beginning, history wasn't content simply to be nostalgic fairytales; it wanted to make you think.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Simon Schama" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-content-simply-to-be-nostalgic/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beginning" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-content-simply-to-be-nostalgic/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac7/simon-schama-4492_beginning_from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-c_1111006.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac7/simon-schama-4492_beginning_from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-c_1111006.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac7/simon-schama-4492_beginning_from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-c_1111006.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“From the very beginning, history wasn't content simply to be nostalgic fairytales; it wanted to make you…” — Simon Schama", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Simon Schama", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "From the very beginning, history wasn't...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-content-simply-to-be-nostalgic/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/from-the-very-beginning-history-wasn-t-content-simply-to-be-nostalgic/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```