Why should we study theatre history? ...or any other history for that matter....Why is it important to study depictions of or ideas of another time? ...

Just as one
traces one's ancestors and one's genetic history in order to know more about oneself, any one
involved with the fine arts should have a background so that he/she can better understand the
style and content of artists, writers, and dramatists.  So often, contemporary artists of all
genres themselves, having studied the masters of their art, imitate, borrow, alter, extend, and
improve upon the standards set by them. For instance, both George Bernard Shaw and Arthur Miller
were heavily influenced by the naturalist drama of Henrik Ibsen.  Thus, a comprehension of
Miller's works includes an understanding of those by Ibsen.

In literature,
a modern writer such as John Steinbeck, whose magnum opus is The
Grapes of Wrath , incorporates into the narrative the philosophy of the Oversoul,
which...