--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I went to high school - that's about…" description: "\"When I went to high school - that's about as far as I got - reading my U.S. history textbook, well, I got the history of the ruling class. I got the h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/utah-phillips-15584_caught_when-i-went-to-high-school-that-s-about_3016417.jpg" --- # When I went to high school - that's about as far as I got… ![“When I went to high school - that's about as far as I got - reading my U.S. history textbook, well, I got the history of the ruling class. I got the history of the generals and the industrialists and the presidents that didn't get caught. How 'bout you? I got all of the history of the people who…” quote by Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/utah-phillips-15584_caught_when-i-went-to-high-school-that-s-about_3016417.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/utah-phillips-15584_caught_when-i-went-to-high-school-that-s-about_3016417.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/53b/utah-phillips-15584_caught_when-i-went-to-high-school-that-s-about_3016417.jpg) > “When I went to high school - that's about as far as I got - reading my U.S. history textbook, well, I got the history of the ruling class. I got the history of the generals and the industrialists and the presidents that didn't get caught. How 'bout you? I got all of the history of the people who owned the wealth of the country, but none of the history of the people that created it.” [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. History taught from elite perspectives omits the contributions of ordinary people who built society. **In simple terms:** History is often one‑sided. Key Takeaway Seek inclusive narratives. Themes history class power education social justice Mood critical provocative Type historical social When to use this quote - teaching - research - activism - documentary making Key Concepts critical historiography grassroots movements economic foundations Questions to Reflect On - Whose stories are missing from your understanding? - How can you amplify marginalized voices? A Different Perspective Dominant narratives can resist revision. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [High school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [History textbooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history-textbooks/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Reading history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading-history/) [Ruling class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ruling-class/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Wealth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wealth/) ## Related quotes > [How much do you know about the Heartland War?' Connor shrugs. 'It was the last chapter in our history textbook, but we had state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/how-much-do-you-know-about-the-heartland-war-connor-shrugs-it-was-the/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [On my reading of history people who want to bring us the best are usually the people we ought to be afraid of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-jamieson/on-my-reading-of-history-people-who-want-to-bring-us-the-best-are/) [Dale Jamieson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-jamieson/) > [“One of the most commonly used American history textbooks is The Americans: Reconstruction to the 21st Century. A thousand-page volume, published by Holt McDougal,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rothstein/one-of-the-most-commonly-used-american-history-textbooks-is-the/) [Richard Rothstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rothstein/) > [I'm a huge history buff. It was no hardship to read history textbooks for homework.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-wyle/i-m-a-huge-history-buff-it-was-no-hardship-to-read-history-textbooks/) [Noah Wyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-wyle/) > [I didn't see many female politicians on TV. I didn't see women in history textbooks, so I did geography, and art and English literature.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-watson/i-didn-t-see-many-female-politicians-on-tv-i-didn-t-see-women-in/) [Emma Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-watson/) > [Washington's address is virtually unknown today and has not been seen in most American history textbooks in nearly four decades. Perhaps it is because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-barton/washington-s-address-is-virtually-unknown-today-and-has-not-been-seen/) [David Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-barton/) > [“history textbooks need to disabuse students of the flat-earth myth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-w-loewen/history-textbooks-need-to-disabuse-students-of-the-flat-earth-myth/) [James W. Loewen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-w-loewen/) > [“It's a shame for a woman's history to be all about men-first boys, then other boys, then men, men, men. It reminds me of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kostova/it-s-a-shame-for-a-woman-s-history-to-be-all-about-men-first-boys/) [Elizabeth Kostova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kostova/) > [Early American speeches, from Washington's to Patrick Henry's, have been detheologized in history textbooks. No one has called it censorship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-g-watt/early-american-speeches-from-washington-s-to-patrick-henry-s-have/) [James G. Watt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-g-watt/) > [I grew up on a farm with only two TV channels. I didn't grow up around much culture. When I got excited about painting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-farber/i-grew-up-on-a-farm-with-only-two-tv-channels-i-didn-t-grow-up-around/) [Neil Farber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-farber/) > [“Students exit history textbooks without having developed the ability to think coherently about social life. Even”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-w-loewen/students-exit-history-textbooks-without-having-developed-the-ability/) [James W. Loewen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-w-loewen/) > [The religious foundations of America have been completely expurgated from our history textbooks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-james-kennedy/the-religious-foundations-of-america-have-been-completely-expurgated/) [D. James Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-james-kennedy/) > [It's a shame for women's history to be all about men--first boys, then other boys, then men men men. It reminds me of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kostova/it-s-a-shame-for-women-s-history-to-be-all-about-men-first-boys-then/) [Elizabeth Kostova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kostova/) > [But really, for me, I tried to find first-person accounts. I tried to read stories from men and women who had survived slavery because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jurnee-smollett/but-really-for-me-i-tried-to-find-first-person-accounts-i-tried-to/) [Jurnee Smollett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jurnee-smollett/) > [“One of the chief values reading history, this is the author, is its capacity to "provoke renegade thoughts".”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-roberts/one-of-the-chief-values-reading-history-this-is-the-author-is-its/) [Andrew Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-roberts/) ## More by Utah Phillips > [Laurie Lewis' songs combine passion and sheer craft in a way you don't hear very often. Whatever country music is supposed to be, she's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/laurie-lewis-songs-combine-passion-and-sheer-craft-in-a-way-you-don-t/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [It is better to be likable than to be talented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/it-is-better-to-be-likable-than-to-be-talented/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [The most un-American thing you can do is to stifle dissent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/the-most-un-american-thing-you-can-do-is-to-stifle-dissent/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [“Yes, the long memory is the most radical idea in this country. It is the loss of that long memory which deprives our people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/yes-the-long-memory-is-the-most-radical-idea-in-this-country-it-is/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [Every good educator knows that true teaching is to teach kids how to ask the right questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/every-good-educator-knows-that-true-teaching-is-to-teach-kids-how-to/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [I tramped. When I was on the freight trains, I wasn't looking for work. I was looking to go from place to place without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/i-tramped-when-i-was-on-the-freight-trains-i-wasn-t-looking-for-work/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [You are about to be told one more time that you are America's most valuable natural resource. Have you seen what they do to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/you-are-about-to-be-told-one-more-time-that-you-are-america-s-most/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [Chris Chandler is the best performance poet I have ever seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/chris-chandler-is-the-best-performance-poet-i-have-ever-seen/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [When I was in Utah there, first learning the kind of music I love, my favorite singer was T. Texas Tyler. So my friend,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/utah-phillips/when-i-was-in-utah-there-first-learning-the-kind-of-music-i-love-my/) [Utah Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/utah-phillips/) > [Folk music isn't owned by anybody. It is owned by everybody, like the national parks, the postal system, and the school system. 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