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A Brief History of the World cover art

A Brief History of the World

By: Peter N. Stearns, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Peter N. Stearns
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Summary

The construction of the great pyramids of Egypt, the development of democracy in ancient Greece, the glories of ancient Rome - these stories are familiar to students of history. But what about the rest of the world? How do the histories of China and Japan, or Russia, India, and the remote territories of Sub-Saharan Africa and South America fit in with commonly known accounts of Western traditions?

Learn the rest of the story with these 36 riveting lectures that survey the expanse of human development and civilization across the globe. From the invention of agriculture in the Neolithic era to the urbanized, technologically sophisticated world of the 21st century, you'll apprehend "the big picture" of world history. You'll examine and compare the peoples, cultures, and nations of Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas to understand how, throughout history, peoples all over the world have connected and interacted, traded goods and technology, and conquered and learned from each other.

As you travel around the world and through time, Professor Stearns provides surprising insights that will overturn many of your assumptions about history. For instance, you'll see how the invention of agriculture brought with it a number of drawbacks, such as a new inequality between men and women and greater exposure to epidemic diseases. Fascinating episodes like these will give you a deep appreciation for the human experience as it was lived throughout the centuries.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2007 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2007 The Great Courses

What listeners say about A Brief History of the World

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Enjoyable

This is a history of trends and inter relationships rather than events and the big names. I found it a very enjoyable look at the history of the world from a global viewpoint.

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3 people found this helpful

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Would have enjoyed more depth

Very good and well structured. I was hoping for more depth and detail, but that isn't the author's intention.

None the less, this is an extremely good overview of world history

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2 people found this helpful

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The second half of the book was ver good

Very interesting, I enjoyed the second half of the book, would listen to few of the chapters again

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1 person found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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Infuriating

How the narrator pronounces Civilisation as “silivization” in EVERY chapter makes it hard to give any credibility. Had to stop listening.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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partially very interesting

chapters 6-7, 14-17, 21, 27-28, 30, 32 very insightful, unfortunately you may skip the rest

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Obviously not required

The presenter seems unable to say more than a few sentences without using the word 'obviously'. I was hoping that as the material went on that either this word would be used less frequently, or I would find it less irritating. Unfortunately, neither was the case.

As for the material itself, I don't normally do history so was hoping to be engaged and pulled in. However, it didn't happen for me and was glad when I finally got to the end. Obviously, the overuse of the word 'obviously' did not help.

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