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      Book

      Making Sense of World History
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      Book

      Making Sense of World History

      DOI link for Making Sense of World History

      Making Sense of World History book

      Making Sense of World History

      DOI link for Making Sense of World History

      Making Sense of World History book

      ByRick Szostak
      Edition 1st Edition
      First Published 2020
      eBook Published 23 October 2020
      Pub. Location London
      Imprint Routledge
      DOI https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003013518
      Pages 1470
      eBook ISBN 9781003013518
      Subjects Humanities
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      Szostak, R. (2020). Making Sense of World History (1st ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003013518

      ABSTRACT

      Making Sense of World History is a comprehensive and accessible textbook that helps students understand the key themes of world history within a chronological framework stretching from ancient times to the present day.

      To lend coherence to its narrative, the book employs a set of organizing devices that connect times, places, and/or themes. This narrative is supported by:

      • Flowcharts that show how phenomena within diverse broad themes interact in generating key processes and events in world history.
      • A discussion of the common challenges faced by different types of agent, including rulers, merchants, farmers, and parents, and a comparison of how these challenges were addressed in different times and places.
      • An exhaustive and balanced treatment of themes such as culture, politics, and economy, with an emphasis on interaction.
      • Explicit attention to skill acquisition in organizing information, cultural sensitivity, comparison, visual literacy, integration, interrogating primary sources, and critical thinking.
      • A focus on historical “episodes” that are carefully related to each other.

      Through the use of such devices, the book shows the cumulative effect of thematic interactions through time, communicates the many ways in which societies have influenced each other through history, and allows us to compare and contrast how they have reacted to similar challenges. They also allow the reader to transcend historical controversies and can be used to stimulate class discussions and guide student assignments.

      With a unified authorial voice and offering a narrative from the ancient to the present, this is the go-to textbook for World History courses and students.

      The Open Access version of this book has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      part I|33 pages

      Organizing world history

      chapter 1|31 pages

      Making sense of world history

      Size: 12.08 MB

      part II|120 pages

      Prehistory and ancient history

      chapter 2|31 pages

      The Big History prelude

      From the Big Bang to hominids

      Size: 10.55 MB

      chapter 3|42 pages

      Evolution of human nature itself in early human history

      Size: 9.24 MB

      chapter 4|44 pages

      A critical transformation

      The development of agriculture, nomadism, and fishing

      Size: 16.69 MB

      chapter 5|44 pages

      Some early impacts of agriculture

      Key technologies and trade practices

      Size: 14.92 MB

      chapter 6|52 pages

      Grappling with “civilization”

      The development of cities, states, and writing

      Size: 18.25 MB

      chapter 7|52 pages

      Early civilizations around the world

      Size: 16.77 MB

      chapter 8|37 pages

      Belief systems

      The nature and development of early religions

      Size: 15.00 MB

      part III|254 pages

      Classical history

      chapter 9|53 pages

      Political organization on an unprecedented scale

      The classical empires

      Size: 23.62 MB

      chapter 10|56 pages

      Similarities and differences

      The Roman and Chinese Empires compared

      Size: 18.33 MB

      chapter 11|49 pages

      The birth of missionary religions

      Why and how did the world’s major religions emerge?

      Size: 22.80 MB

      chapter 12|34 pages

      A new force in world history

      The Islamic conquests

      Size: 14.09 MB

      chapter 13|58 pages

      Eurasia in the centuries after the fall of the classical empires

      Size: 36.18 MB

      part IV|159 pages

      The Middle Ages

      chapter 14|30 pages

      Seeking global commonalities

      Some key thematic trends 900–1500 and beyond

      Size: 13.77 MB

      chapter 15|57 pages

      Regional developments

      Eurasia after 900

      Size: 27.42 MB

      chapter 16|35 pages

      Regional developments

      Polynesia, the Americas, and Africa

      Size: 19.04 MB

      chapter 17|33 pages

      The Mongols and the largest ever contiguous empire

      Size: 16.50 MB

      part V|227 pages

      The Early Modern period

      chapter 18|37 pages

      Thematic developments in the Early Modern period 1450–1800

      Size: 14.17 MB

      chapter 19|54 pages

      Exploration and trade

      Linking the continents

      Size: 18.76 MB

      chapter 20|53 pages

      Comparing new empires in Asia

      Size: 46.14 MB

      chapter 21|41 pages

      It seems so natural now

      The emergence of the modern nation state

      Size: 27.26 MB

      chapter 22|37 pages

      The Great Divergence

      The rise of the European economy and military

      Size: 18.90 MB

      part VI|360 pages

      The nineteenth and twentieth centuries

      chapter 23|40 pages

      Key thematic transformations of the long nineteenth century

      Size: 22.03 MB

      chapter 24|35 pages

      Industrial revolutions

      Innovation, factories, and economic growth

      Size: 16.42 MB

      chapter 25|33 pages

      Political revolutions around the world

      A diverse set of experiences with important commonalities

      Size: 16.63 MB

      chapter 26|31 pages

      A unique historical transformation

      The abolition of slavery 
and serfdom

      Size: 17.50 MB

      chapter 27|46 pages

      Key thematic transformations of 
the twentieth century

      Size: 17.00 MB

      chapter 28|52 pages

      Devastation and fear

      War in the twentieth century

      Size: 26.43 MB

      chapter 29|39 pages

      The worst of times and the best of times

      The Great Depression and postwar recovery

      Size: 17.21 MB

      chapter 30|39 pages

      An unprecedented development

      Postwar decolonization

      Size: 16.15 MB

      chapter 31|38 pages

      Population movements

      Dramatic changes in the numbers, location, and 
health of humans

      Size: 25.52 MB

      part VII|53 pages

      Drawing lessons

      chapter 32|51 pages

      Drawing lessons from history

      Why, how, and what

      Size: 13.64 MB
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