SEC-17/W6|Do you believe history repeats itself?

I am a Sociology student studying various aspects of how society functions and addressing these questions through the lens of social physics. There are numerous paradigms, concepts, theories, and propositions (relationships between two concepts) that examine the statement, "history can repeat itself." This statement is thought to originate from the French proverb, "L'Histoire se Répète," which is also the title of a song by Keny Arkana, a French-Argentinian female rapper known as a rebel active in the alter-globalization movement.

_{Me, along with my friends from the Sociology Student Association in the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Syiah Kuala University. Source: My personal collection}

Although it may seem trivial, "L'Histoire se Répète" has sparked significant discourse, giving rise to new ideas over the centuries, especially within the context of social physics. Even the leading figures of Sociological schools, as we call them in class, are divided into various paradigms when analyzing phenomena occurring within society. To this day, no single consensus unites these paradigms.

However, in this discussion, I won't delve into the highly abstract theories that even I find challenging to comprehend fully. This is the risk of engaging in a discipline that is so abstract, making it difficult to find absolute truths about what happens around us.

There is an intriguing concept closely related to the question posed in the S17W6 contest. This concept is known as social equilibrium. But what I refer to is not the equilibrium in mathematical economics involving complex calculations, but rather a state where society tends to maintain balance through mechanisms that seem abstract.

For instance, when a community starts showing shifts in values and norms, it often leads to an increase in criminal activities in that area. This pattern will continue to repeat until it reaches a saturation point, where the situation becomes uncontrollable (anomie) and eventually leads to chaos. This chaos, despite its negative connotation, is a natural mechanism by which equilibrium continues. However, it should be noted that chaos will only occur if other defense mechanisms fail to yield any results.

_{This place serves as evidence that chaos, sooner or later, will come to an end, and its remnants will eventually be forgotten. Source: My personal collection}

On a smaller scale, we experience and feel equilibrium continuously, often without realizing it. For example, when you are driving while tired and, unfortunately, another driver accidentally hits you from behind. It's almost certain that you will curse them. But over time, you begin to forget about the minor accident, even forgetting the face of the person who hit you. This is a mechanism for maintaining the concept of equilibrium in order to producing balance within society.

On a larger scale, wars, revolutions, conflicts, and a series of other global events also follow recurring equilibrium patterns. In a recent conflict resolution class I attended, for instance, I learned about the common stages in a conflict according to Glasl's Model. These nine stages are: hardening, debates and polemics, actions not words, images and coalitions, loss of face, strategies and threats, limited destructive blows, fragmentation of the enemy, and together into the abyss (Jordan, 2000).

Talcott Parsons stated that all social systems tend to maintain equilibrium, as I mentioned earlier. So if asked, "Do you believe history repeats itself through genes?" I would firmly say no. History only repeats itself through the processes of interaction within society. It is too simplistic to interpret history as something that happens purely within the scope of genetics. It is clear that genetically, physical and emotional traits are inherited from parents to their children. That is heredity and it is indisputable. Period.

One final note: With all due respect, I would like to apologize to the administrators of the Incredible India community for the content of my entry not meeting the specified requirements.

I believe this contest is not appropriately titled "Do you believe history repeats itself?" because, in my opinion, this theme is more suited to a discussion of social aspects rather than heredity. The significant events in world history cannot be separated from the role of global society itself.

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