How does Historybusters define “accurate enough
to pass a test, but still enjoyable”?
First, we realize that no movie is entirely accurate. For that matter, no documentary,
historian, or history book is ever entirely accurate. Historybusters looks for high quality, award-winning films that bring
history to life without telling falsehoods. As often as possible, we choose films about real people. However, when a fictionalized
character brings a time period to vivid life accurately, we do include it here and indicate that the character is fictionalized
in our reviews. Most importantly, we avoid “tabloid history” like the plague.
What is tabloid history?
Tabloid histories use phrases like, “experts have discovered,”
and “some experts believe.” However, they never bother to tell you about the scientific experts, how well other
experts respect them, or even what makes them an expert in their field. Tabloid histories consist of historical documentaries
and movies that don’t differentiate between “documented fact” and “authoritative speculation.”
The world is full of authorities; they all speculate, and they all form opinions. Opinions only become historical fact if
they can be documented by a primary source—and even then it’s suspect until other primary sources concur.
What is the difference between a primary source and a secondary
source?
A primary source is an eyewitness account, either written or recorded. A secondary
source is something you’ve either heard about, or read about. It is a non-eye-witness account. It is hearsay. All secondary
sources should be supported by multiple primary sources before you consider them accurate. Great documentaries find creative
ways to record their primary sources on film.
Why history?
History encourages critical thinking. History gives people a sense of perspective.
History documents humankind’s every mistake. History documents humankind’s every triumph. History shows that humans
haven’t changed all that much; we just have bigger toys. Most importantly, history makes for a darn good story.
Why historical movies?
When I was ten, my mother let me stay up late to watch Alfred the Great
with her. The story was full of intrigue, love, lust, battles, betrayals, and triumphs. I was riveted. After the movie was
over, my mother informed me that King Alfred was a real man who had ruled in England over a thousand years ago, and that a
lot of what I had just seen had really happened. From that moment on, I was hooked. Suddenly, I wanted to know, "What's a
thousand years ago, and where exactly is England?" Since starting this website, I’ve asked a lot of history buffs what
hooked them on history. They all have the same tale. When they were kids, someone introduced them to a wonderful and
a true story.
When should I start showing my children movies about history?
The sooner you start, the better. Or, you could just wait until your kid’s
first year of World History and expect him or her to cram a lifetime of learning into one semester. It’s your choice.
What do you mean by “family friendly, but with mature
content”?
When you see “family friendly,” think “G” rating.
When you see “family friendly with mildly mature content,” think
“PG” rating.
When you see “family friendly, but with mature content,” think
“PG 13” rating.
When you see “this film contains mature content,” think “R”
rating.
Why not just use the ratings “G, PG, PG 13, and R?”
I don’t like them; they’re not as friendly.
Why are the 1900's called the 20th century, and the 1800's
called the 19th century? It's so confusing.
Yes it is confusing, but there is an excellent reason. The first century
began in the year 1 AD and ended in the year 100 AD. The second century began in the year 101 AD and ended in the
year 200 AD. In other words, we name each century by the number of years passed since the birth of Christ. One-hundred years
equals one century; two-hundred years equals two centuries, etc.. Think about it, and if it still doesn't make sense then
look at your Historybusters' Timeline and focus one the differnce between 1 AD and 1 BC.
So what the heck does CE and BCE mean?
CE stands for Common Era, Current Era, or Christian Era depending
on whom you are speaking to. BCE stands for Before Common Era, Before Current Era, or Before Christian Era depending on whom
you are speaking to. As far as dates go, BCE means the same thing as BC; CE means the same thing as AD. The whole thing
is an argument over semantics.
What's the difference between one million and one trillion?
Well, let's get a sense of how much one million is before we tackle a trillion. There
are 60 minutes in an hour, 1440 minutes in a day, and 525,600 minutes in a year. Double 525,600 and you get 1,051,200. In
other words, one million minutes is 35 days less than two years. If you took your age and divided it in two, you'd know
about how many million minutes you've been alive. Now, the difference between a million and a billion is three more zeros.
So, a million minutes takes about 2 years, a billion minutes takes about 2,000 years, and a trillion minutes takes about
2,000,000 years. That's a big difference. Think about that difference the next time you hear people discussing the
U.S Federal budget.
Have you got a question not answered here?
Send it to lynn@navigatinglife.org and place “Historybusters Question” in the subject heading.
Historybusters is an offshoot of Navigating Life:
dedicated to providing its readers with the tools they need to Navigate Life.
You can find out more about us at www.navigatinglife.org
