ABSTRACT
The importance of learning from experience is well recognised. Many aphorisms and quotations show that the requirement seems embedded in popular culture: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” (Santayana) and “History repeats itself, first as tragedy and then as farce” (Marx). The first quotation touches on the importance of being able to recall past experience – the knowledge and understanding that can come from previous incidents and events is often gained at significant expense, and should not be discarded lightly. The second quotation presents a slightly bleaker picture, suggesting that the repetition of previous failure has an element of inevitability about it. Are either, or both, of these positions correct?
