History repeats itself

History repeats itself

The world is full of many mysteries, and things that happen, and people do not know how to explain them. However, as the popular mantra goes, “History repeats itself.” One can find answers to the present by looking at the past as many past occurrences and happenings at present are a result of past conditions. Language is a critical issue that existed in the past, exists in the present, and will exist in the future. Language has the ability to cause inequalities in society and is, therefore, considered a powerful tool. Colonialism is the other concept that existed in the past but affects the present and the future. Its consequences are inevitable, and it is closely intertwined with language and capitalism. Capitalism is a result of colonialism that occurred in the past. It is still applicable in the present and is also likely to affect the future.

To walk backwards into the future is a concept that emphasizes the importance of time. The concepts argue that the past, the present, and the future are intertwined, and they affect each other. Life is a continuous cosmic process, and within the cosmic movement, time lacks restrictions as it is both present and past (Tse et al., 2005). According to Patterson (1992), people from the western side believe that aspirations and goals are in the future, which is thought to be ahead while the past is believed to be behind. However, Maoris’ perspective argues differently where it states that the present and the past are already known and are, therefore, at the forefront of human consciousness. On the other hand, the future is not known and is therefore considered as ‘behind’ (Walker, 1996). A person is considered traveling backward into the future with the present in front of him, which is a continuation of the past. Conceptualizing time takes a person’s past into the future rather than leaving it behind.

Additionally, the past and the future are also intertwined. The past is also a reference point when one wants to predict the future. Since history repeats itself, to know when it is likely to occur, one needs to look at the past. One might be faced with current events or situations in which he does not know how they will eventually unfold. To predict the future, it is important to look at the past and get to know how things unfolded as they are likely to happen the same way they did in the past. This is in line with the statement of walking backward in the future as the present and the past are the only times which one knows about. Preset and past events are the predictors of the future, and therefore one must consider present and past moments to predict the future.

In the book language, capitalism, colonialism: towards a critical history’ By Monica Heller, Bonnie McElhinny (2017), there is a discussion of the interconnectedness of the three concepts. The authors discuss how the three concepts are a reflection of walking back into the future. People are interested in language because it is valuable, and its value comes from its connection to the production, circulation, and consumption of resources as well as their identification. Language is interconnected to the economic and political activities which have existed since time immemorial that is; they belong to the past. The economic and political activities are capitalism and colonialism respectively and have significant impacts on the present and also have a possibility of affecting the future. According to Heller and McElhinny (2017), to determine the origin of capitalism, we need to look at the past to understand its origins and the motives of its advocates. We also need to study the past organization o social and material relations of the production and distribution of people and resources and how they are valued to understand the present and the future. Studying the past of capitalism and looking at its present helps us to predict its future. The statement is in support of walking backwards into the future as it means that the answers of the future are in the past and the present. The present and the past make the future.

Similarly, to understand the present of colonialism, we need to understand the past first. The past has the answers to all the questions concerning the present, and it helps us understand the reasons for the occurrence of colonialism. Heller & McElhinny (2017) argues that focusing on the pats helps us to understand how political phenomena were constructed or deconstructed. It also helps one to understand the attempts that have been made to alter the structures and if there was an obstruction as well as if there was a success. One is able to know where his ideas come from and what they are connected to and what is likely to happen. All these could help us understand the present and be able to predict the future as the future lies in the presents and past activities. Without consideration of the present and the past, one would not know about the future of colonialism and the possible effects it is likely to bring to the future.

In my opinion, I think the phrase ‘walking backward into the future means that the past determines the present and the future. To understand the present occurrences and why things happen the way they do, it is important for us to take a look at what happened in the past that caused the present to be the way it is. The past is usually the cause of the good things or the misfortunes that happen today. As the popular mantra goes, ‘history repeats itself,’ looking into the past could help explain why things are happening. Besides, looking into the past could help in getting solutions on how to solve problems just like it was done in the past. The past remains a very important time in history as it is the reflection of the present.