Synopses & Reviews
The World interweaves two stories—of our interactions with nature and with each other. The environment-centered story is about humans distancing themselves from the rest of nature and searching for a relationship that strikes a balance between constructive and destructive exploitation. The culture-centered story is of how human cultures have become mutually influential and yet mutually differentiating. Both stories have been going on for thousands of years. We do not know whether they will end in triumph or disaster.
There is no prospect of covering all of world history in one book. Rather, the fabric of this book is woven from selected strands. Readers will see these at every turn, twisted together into yarn, stretched into stories. Human-focused historical ecology—the environmental theme—will drive readers back, again and again, to the same concepts: sustenance, shelter, disease, energy, technology, art. (The last is a vital category for historians, not only because it is part of our interface with the rest of the world, but also because it forms a record of how we see reality and of how the way we see it changes.) In the global story of human interactions—the cultural theme—we return constantly to the ways people make contact with each another: migration, trade, war, imperialism, pilgrimage, gift exchange, diplomacy, travel—and to their social frameworks: the economic and political arenas, the human groups and groupings, the states and civilizations, the sexes and generations, the classes and clusters of identity.
Synopsis
This is the world history book that gives students the whole story. The World is the first world history textbook that shows, through a holistic, truly engaging narrative, the fundamental interrelationships between peoples and their environment. This is the first textbook for which the author’s ability to tell the story of the World will help students to learn world history, and help teachers to teach world history. Author Felipe Fernandez-Armesto is a world renowned historian, world respected scholar, successful author of more than 25 books translated into 22 languages, as well as an exceptional writer, highly sought after speaker, and inspiring classroom teacher. Felipe Fernandez-Armesto is a master historian and storyteller. His work and his writing have helped to shape and define the discipline. The World also features an innovative map program created exclusively for this text by Dorling Kindersley, unique images from around the world, a new document CDROM called Primary Source included in the text. For World History 1 (to 1500) (Chapters 1-15) and World History II (since 1500) (Chapters 13-30). For Introductory World History Courses.
Synopsis
The World gives students the whole story. It is a new kind of history text — not just a collection of facts and figures. World renowned historian, world respected scholar, successful author of more than 25 books translated into 22 languages, and exceptional writer, author Felipe Fernández-Armesto offers a truly holistic narrative of the world, from human beginnings to the present. All aspects of the text — from the exceptionally clear narrative that always places the story in time, to the unparalleled map program, to the focused pedagogical features — support the story. Because of the author’s breadth of vision, students will come away with a deep understanding of the fundamental interrelationships — among peoples and their environments — that make up the world’s story.
Developing a project like The World required the input of and counsel of hundreds of individuals. David Ringrose, respected World Historian from the University of California—San Diego, served as The World’s editorial consultant, and provided extensive teaching tips in the Instructor’s Guide to Teaching the World. Nearly 100 reviewers critiqued the manuscript, from the first edition to the final draft. Instructor focus groups were held throughout the country during the publication process. And finally, we are proud that over 1,000 students from across the country class-tested The World, providing invaluable feedback and advice.
About the Author
Felipe Fernández-Armesto holds the William P. Reynolds Chair of History at the University of Notre Dame. He has master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Oxford, where he spent most of his teaching career, before taking up the Chair of Global Environmental History at Queen Mary College, University of London in 2000, and the Prince of Asturias Chair at Tufts University (2005-9). He is on editorial boards for the History of Cartography for the University of Chicago Press, Studies in Overseas History (Leiden University), Comparative Studies in Society and History, Journeys, and Journal of Global History. Recent awards include the World History Association Book Prize (2007), Spain’s Premio Nacional de GastronomIa (2005, for his work on the history of food), the Premio Nacional de Investigación (Sociedad Geográfica Española, 2004). He has had many distinguished visiting appointments, including a Fellowship of the Netherlands Institute of Advanced Study in the Humanities and Social Sciences, and a Union Pacific Visiting Professorship at the University of Minnesota. He won the Caird Medal of the National Maritime Museum in 1995 and the John Carter Brown Medal in 1999 and has honorary doctorates from La Trobe University and the Universidad de los Andes. He has served on the Council of the Hakluyt Society, on the Committee of English PEN, and as Chairman of the PEN Literary Foundation. His work in journalism includes regular columns in the British and Spanish press, and, among many contributions to broadcasting, he is the longest-serving presenter of BBC radio’s flagship current affairs program, Analysis. He has been short-listed for the most valuable literary prize in the U.K.
Table of Contents
Volume 1: Chapters 1-15
Volume 2: Chapters 13-30
Volume A: Chapters 1-10
Volume B: Chapters 11-20
Volume C: Chapters 20-30
Part 5: Contact and Conflicts, 1000 CE to 1200 CE
Chapter 11
Contending with Isolation: ca. 1000-1200
Around the Indian Ocean: Ethiopia, the Khmer, and India
- East Africa: The Ethiopian Empire
- Southeast Asia: The Khmer Kingdom
- India: Economy and Culture
- India: The Chola Kingdom
Eurasia’s Extremities: Japan and Western Europe
- Japan
- Western Europe: Economics and Politics
- Western Europe: Religion and Culture
In Perspective: The Patchwork of Effects
Chapter 12
The Nomadic Frontiers: The Islamic World, Byzantium, and China, ca. 1000-1200
The Islamic World and Its Neighbors
- The Coming of the Steppelanders
- The Crusades
- The Invaders from the Sahara
- The Progress of Sufism
The Byzantine Empire and Its Neighbors
- Byzantium and the Barbarians
- Basil II
- The Era of Difficulties
- Byzantium and the Crusaders
- Byzantine Art and Learning
China and the Northern Barbarians
- The End of the Tang Dynasty
- The Rise of the Song and the Barbarian Conquests
- Economy and Society Under the Song
- Song Art and Learning
In Perspective: Cains and Abels
PART 6: the crucible: the eurasian crises of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries
Chapter 13
The World the Mongols Made
The Mongols: Reshaping Eurasia
- Genghis Khan
- The Mongol Steppe
The Mongol World Beyond the Steppes: The Silk Roads, China, Persia, and Russia
The Limits of Conquest: Mamluk Egypt and Muslim India
- Mamluk Egypt
- Muslim India: The Delhi Sultanate
Europe
In Perspective: The Uniqueness of the Mongols
Chapter 14
The Revenge of Nature: Plague, Cold, and the Limits of Disaster in the Fourteenth Century
Climate Change
The Coming of the Age of Plague
- The Course and Impact of Plague
- Medicine and Morals
- The Jews
- Distribution of Wealth
- Peasant Millenarianism
The Limits of Disaster: Beyond the Plague Zone
- India
- Southeast Asia
- Japan
- Mali
The Pacific: Societies of Isolation
- Easter Island
- New Zealand
- Ozette
- Chan Chan
In Perspective: The Aftershock
Chapter 15
Expanding Worlds: Recovery in the Late Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries
Fragile Empires in Africa
Ecological Imperialism in the Americas
- The Inca Empire
- The Aztec Empire
New Eurasian Empires
- The Russia Empire
- Timurids and the Ottoman Empire
The Limitations of Chinese Imperialism
The Beginnings of Oceanic Imperialism
The European Outlook: Problems and Promise
In Perspective: Beyond Empires
Part 7: Convergence and Divergence to ca. 1700
Chapter 16
Imperial Arenas: New Empires in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries
Maritime Empires: Portugal, Japan, and the Dutch
- The Portuguese Example
- Asian Examples
- The Dutch Connection
Land Empires: Russia, China, Mughal India, and the Ottomans
- China
- The Mughal Example in India
- The Ottomans
New Land Empires in the Americas
- Making the New Empires Work
In Perspective: The Global Balance of Trade
Chapter 17
The Ecological Revolution of the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries
The Ecological Exchange: Plants and Animals
- Maize, Sweet Potatoes, and Potatoes
- Weeds, Grasses, and Livestock
- Cane Sugar
- Coffee, Tea, and Chocolate
- Patterns of Ecological Exchange
The Microbial Exchange
- Demographic Collapse in the New World
- Plague and New Diseases in Eurasia
Labor: Human Transplantations
Wild Frontiers: Encroaching Settlement
- Northern and Central Asia: The Waning of Steppeland Imperialism
- Pastoral Imperialism in Africa and the Americas
Imperialism and Settlement in Europe and Asia
New Exploitation in the Americas
- The Spanish Empire
- Brazil
- British North America
Home Fronts in Europe and Asia
- New Energy Sources
- Land Reclamation
Frontiers of the Hunt
In Perspective: Evolution Redirected
Chapter 18
Mental Revolutions: Religion and Science in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries
Christianity in Christendom
Christianity Beyond Christendom: The Limits of Success
The Missionary Worlds of Buddhism and Islam
- China and Japan
- The Mongols
- Islam
The Resulting Mix: Global Religious Diversity–American and Indian Examples
- Black America
- White America
- India
The Renaissance “Discovery of the World”
The Rise of Western Science
Western Science in the East
In Perspective: The Scales of Thought
Chapter 19
States and Societies: Political and Social Change in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries
Political Change in Europe
Western Political Thought
Western Society
The Ottomans
Mughal India and Safavid Persia
China
- Chinese Politics
- Chinese Society
Tokugawa Japan
The New World of the Americas
Africa
In Perspective: Centuries of Upheaval
Part 8: Global Enlightenments, 1700-1800
Chapter 20
Driven by Growth: The Global Economy in the Eighteenth Century
Population Trends
- Urbanization
- Explanations
- Medicine
- The Ecology of Disease
Economic Trends: China, India, and the Ottoman Empire
- China
- India
- The Ottoman Empire and Its Environs
The West’s Productivity Leap
- The Scientific Background
- The British Example
The Expansion of Resources
In Perspective: New Europes, New Departures