Opinions vary regarding whether it is necessary to understand the past in order to solve problems in the present and future. I strongly disagree with the statement for the following two reasons. First, the problems of today’s society are different from those of the past because modern society changes so fast. Moreover, our current problems are too complicated to be solved with insight gained from the past.
First of all, modern society is changing very fast, and thus the problem of today’s society cannot be solved with lessons and advice from the past. Nowadays, our society is evolving at a high speed, which is different from in the past. Some people say that today’s people can gain solutions from the past since problems are repetitive. However, I maintain that solutions in the past cannot become appropriate solutions to resolve modern today’s problems. For example, in these days, the problems of cars have been increasing, which did not emerge in the past. The problems arising from cars, such as air pollution and a motoring accident, are unique in today’s society, which was not serious problems in the past when horses were the primary mode of transportation. In the case, the problems stemming from cars cannot be addressed using advice and lessons from the past.
In addition, the problems that recently happen are too complex to find proper solutions from the past. In the past, most problems could easily be addressed using the solution of the past. However, today’s problems are not consisted of only one cause, but at least two causes. Thus, learning in the past is no longer good way to solve the problems of modern society. For example, one of the problems in the present is computer virus, which cannot be imaged in the past. Computer virus causes people’s living to destroy by spoiling computer network people need. The solution from the present can suggest proper solutions to address this problem rather than the solution from the past. In addition to the problem of computer virus, contents on the Internet can generate serious societal problems, which can only use today’s solution. In this context, I think that learning the past does not suggest appropriate ways to solve the sophisticated problems of modern society.
In conclusion, it is unnecessary for people to understand in order to solve today’s problems because, in these days, the change of speed is faster than the past, and the problems’ complexity is more complex than the past. |