“Any person who considers himself, and intends to remain, a member of Western society inherits the Western past from Athens and Jerusalem to Runnymede and Valley Forge, as well as to Watts and Chicago of August 1968. He may ignore it or deny it, but that does not alter the fact. The past sits back and smiles and knows it owns him anyway.”

American historian, journalist, and author

Barbara W. Tuchman was an American historian, journalist, and author. She lived in the 20th century and won the Pulitzer Prize twice. She is best known for her history writing, especially "The Guns of August," which examined the prelude to and first month of World War I, and "Stilwell and the American Experience in China," her biography of General Joseph Stilwell. Her work focused on military history and the people and events that shaped major wars.