Historical figure
A historical figure is a significant person in history.
The significance of such figures in human progress has been debated. Some think they play a crucial role, while others say they have little impact on the broad currents of thought and social change. The concept is generally used in the sense that the person really existed in the past, as opposed to being legendary. However, the legends that can grow up around historical figures may be hard to distinguish from fact. Sources are often incomplete and may be inaccurate, particularly those from early periods of history. Without a body of personal documents, the more subtle aspects of personality of a historical figure can only be deduced. With historical figures who were also religious figures attempts to separate fact from belief may be controversial.
In education, presenting information as if it were being told by a historical figure may give it greater impact. Since classical times, students have been asked to put themselves in the place of a historical figure as a way of bringing history to life. Historical figures are often represented in fiction, where fact and fancy are combined. In earlier traditions, before the rise of a critical historical tradition, authors took less care to be as accurate when describing what they knew of historical figures and their actions, interpolating imaginary elements intended to serve a moral purpose to events. More recently there has been a tendency once again for authors to freely depart from the "facts" when they conflict with their creative goals.
In education[edit]
Plato used historical figures in his writing, but only to illustrate his points. Xenophon used Cyrus the Great in the same way.
When Plato apparently quotes Socrates in The Republic, it is only to add dramatic effect to the presentation of his own thought.[40] For this reason, Plato's writings on Socrates tell us little, at least directly, about Socrates. The historical figure is used only as a device for communicating Plato's ideas.[40] In classical Rome, students of rhetoric had to master the suasoria — a form of declamation in which they wrote the soliloquy of a historical figure who was debating a critical course of action. For example, the poet Juvenal wrote a speech for the dictator Sulla, in which he was counselled to retire. The poet Ovid enjoyed this exercise more than the other final challenge — the controversia.[41]
The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote an influential essay "On the Uses and Disadvantages of History for Life". He said "the unhistorical and historical are necessary in equal measure for the health of an individual, of a people and of a culture."[42]
Nietzsche identifies three approaches to history, each with dangers.
The monumental approach describes the glories of the past, often focusing on heroic figures like Elizabeth I of England, King Robert the Bruce or Louis Pasteur.
By treating these figures as models, the student is tempted to consider that there can be nobody of such stature today.
The antiquarian view examines the past in minute and reverent detail, turning its back on the present.
The critical approach challenges traditional views, even though they may be valid.[43]
Historical figures may today be simulated as animated pedagogical agents to teach history and foreign culture. An example is Freudbot, which acted the part of Sigmund Freud for psychology students. When a variety of simulated character types were tried as educational agents, students rated historical figures as the most engaging.[44]
There are gender differences in the perception of historical figures. When modern US schoolchildren were asked to roleplay or illustrate historical stereotypes, boys tended to focus upon male figures exclusively while girls showed more varied family groupings.[45]
In branding[edit]
Using historical figures in marketing communications and in branding is a new area of marketing research but historical figures’ names were used to promote products as early as in the Middle Ages.[46]
Historical figure brand is using famous historical person in branding, for instance Mozartkugel, Chopin (vodka) or Café Einstein.
Historical figure is a person who lived in the past and whose deeds exerted a significant impact on other people’s lives and consciousness. These figures are attributed with certain features that are a compilation of the actual values they proclaimed and the manner they were perceived by others. This perception evolves and subsequent generations read the biography of a given historical figure in their own way through their own knowledge and experience. In order to determine the popularity of the commercialisation of historical figures, a study was conducted at the beginning of 2014 on the number of trademark protection applications filed with the Patent Office of the Republic of Poland as a measure of entrepreneurs’ interest in this activity. The names of 300 most prominent Polish historical figures [47] were considered. The study showed that over 21% of the names analysed were recorded in the trademark register. 1,033 trademark protection applications were filed for 64 names out of the 300 historical figures investigated [Aldona Lipka, 2015,[48]]. The greatest number of trademark protection applications were recorded for Mieszko (295), followed by Nicolaus Copernicus (250), John III Sobieski (94) and Chopin (81).
