I want to discuss the old saying "history repeats itself." There are two interpretations: first, that people never learn from their mistakes, and second, that history's patterns naturally recur. I'll use examples from China's Eastern Han Dynasty (first-second century CE) to explore this from different perspectives.
The Imperial Power Struggles
In first-century China, extended family members of the emperor constantly fought for power, leading to repeated tragedies. It seemed they hadn't learned from events just a century or even fifty years earlier.
However, looking deeper reveals they did learn—but learned the wrong lessons. After generations of conflict, imperial family members realized that to control the emperor, they needed to cooperate rather than fight each other. Two or three extended families began working together to dominate the throne. Eventually, emperors figured out ways to eliminate these powerful families entirely.
This shows that people learned from history, but their lesson was "how to consolidate power more effectively," not "avoid the struggle altogether." When pursuing ultimate power and wealth, people become blinded by greed, leading to miscalculations—not because history failed to teach them, but because they chose what to learn.
A Broader Perspective: Dogs and Humans
From a universal perspective, people absolutely learn from history. Consider dogs—uniquely domesticated animals whose ancestors were wild wolves. Unlike horses, pigs, or chickens, dogs evolved through a remarkable historical partnership with humans.
Tens of thousands of years ago, wolf packs expelled their weaker, younger members. These outcasts discovered that living near early humans (Homo sapiens) provided food scraps for survival. Over generations, this relationship deepened. Wolves began barking to alert humans of danger, and humans recognized their value. Eventually, humans trained wolf-dogs to hunt and guard property, leading to the shepherd and hunting dog breeds we know today.


Conclusion
Whether creatures learn from history depends on perspective. From a narrow view focused on power struggles, people seem doomed to repeat mistakes—not because history doesn't teach us, but because greed blinds us to its lessons. From a broader evolutionary view, both humans and animals clearly learn and adapt across generations. History offers its lessons; whether we learn depends on what we choose to see.
Thank you for listening.
#History repeats itself#do people learn from history#Eastern Han Dynasty#dog domestication history#power struggles in ancient China#wolf to dog evolution

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