The World's History

The past is not simply a list of events. Historical records are the means by which historians develop their interpretations of those events. Because interpretations differ, there is no single historical record, but various narrations of events each told from a different perspective. Therefore the study of history is intimately linked to the study of values, the values of the historical actors, the historians who have written about them, and of the students engaged in learning about them.

The World's History links chronology, themes, and geography in eight units, or Parts, of study. The Parts move progressively along a time line from the emergence of early humans to the present day. Each Part emphasizes a single theme-for example, urbanization or religion or migration-and students learn to use them all to analyze historical events and to develop a grasp of the chronology of human development. The final chapter employs all the themes developed in the first seven Parts as tools for understanding the history of our own times. Geographically, each Part covers the entire globe, although specific topics place greater emphasis on specific regions.

List of contents

PART ONE
HUMAN ORIGINS AND HUMAN CULTURES To 10,000 B.C.E.
Building an Interpretive Framework: What Do We Know and How Do We Know It?
 
CHAPTER 1
The Dry Bones Speak
To 10,000 B.C.E.
Human Origins in Myth and History
Early Myths
The Evolutionary Explanation
    The New Challenges
Fossils and Fossil Hunters
The Puzzling Neanderthals
Homo erectus: A Worldwide Wanderer
The Search Shifts to Africa
    Homo habilis
    Australopithecus afarensis
The Debate over African Origins
Reading the Genetic Record
The Theory of Scientific Revolution
Humans Create Culture
How Did We Survive?
Global Migration
Increased Population and New Settlements
Changes in the Toolkit
Language and Communication
Cave Art and Portable Art
Agriculture: From Hunter-gatherer to Farmer
The Story of Prehistory:What Difference Does It Make?
TURNING POINT: The Agricultural Village
 
PART TWO
SETTLING DOWN 10,000 B.C.E.-1000 C.E.
The First Cities and Why They Matter: Digs, Texts, and Interpretations
 
CHAPTER 2
From Village Community to City-state
Food First: The Agricultural Village
10,000 B.C.E.-750 B.C.E.

The Agricultural Village
The First Cities
Sumer: The Birth of the City
The Growth of the City-state
Religion: The Priesthood and the City
Occupational Specialization and Class Structure

    Arts and Invention
    Trade and Markets: Wheeled Cart and Sailboat
Monumental Architecture and Adornment
Writing
Achievements in Literature and Law
The First Cities:What Difference Do They Make?

 
CHAPTER 3
RiverValley Civilizations: The Nile and the Indus
7000 B.C.E.-750 B.C.E.
Egypt: The Gift of the Nile
Earliest Egypt: Before the Kings
The Written Record
Unification and the Rule of the Kings
The Gods, the Unification of Egypt, and the Afterlife
Cities of the Dead
The Growth of Cities
Monumental Architecture of the Old Kingdom: Pyramids and Fortresses
The Disintegration of the Old Kingdom
The Rise and Fall of the Middle Kingdom
Akhetaten, Capital City of King Akhenaten
The Indus Valley Civilization and its Mysteries
The Roots of the Indus Valley Civilization
The Design and Construction of Well-planned Cities
    Crafts and the Arts
    Carefully Planned Cities
    Questions of Interpretation
Legacies of the Harappan Civilization
The Cities of the Nile and Indus: What Difference Do They Make?
 
CHAPTER FOUR
A Polycentric World
Cities and States in East Asia, the Americas, and West Africa
1700 B.C.E.-1000 C.E.
China: The Xia, Shang, and Zhou Dynasties
The Earliest Villages
The Beginnings of State Formation
    Early Evidence of Writing
    Historical Evidence of the Xia Dynasty
    Similarities Among the Three Dynasties
City and State under the Shang and Zhou
    Early Royal Capitals
    Anyang: The Last Shang Capital
    The Zhou Dynasty
The Western Hemisphere: Mesoamerica and South America
Origins: Migration and Agriculture
Mesoamerican Urbanization: The First Stages
    Olmec Civilization along the Gulf Coast
    Zapotec Civilization in the Oaxaca Valley
The Urban Explosion: Teotihuacán
Successor States in the Valley of Mexico
The Rise and Fall of the Maya
    The Great City of Tikal
    Maya Civilization in Decline
Urbanization in South America
Coastal Settlements and Networks
    The Moche
    The Chimu
Urbanization in the Andes Mountains
    The Chavin
    The Tiwanaku, Huari, and Nazca
    The Inca
Agricultural Towns in North America
West Africa: The Niger River Valley
West Africa Before Urbanization
Jenne-jeno: A New Urban Pattern?
State Formation?
The First Cities:What Difference Do They Make?
TURNING POINT: From City-state to Empire
 
PART THREE
EMPIRE AND IMPERIALISM (2000 B.C.E.-1100 C.E.)
What are Empires and Why are they Important?
 
CHAPTER FIVE
Dawn of the Empires
Empire-building in North Africa,West Asia, and the Mediterranean
2000 B.C.E.-300 B.C.E.
The Meaning of Empire
The Earliest Empires
Mesopotamia and the Fertile Crescent
    Sargon of Akkad
    Waves of Invaders: The Babylonians and the Hittites
    The Assyrians
Egypt and International Conquest
The Art of Palace and Temple
The End of Empire
The Persian Empire
Persian Expansion
Imperial Policies
    Cyrus II
    Cambyses II
    Darius I
Symbols of Power
The Greek City-states
Early City-states of the Aegean
    The Minoans
    The Mycenaeans
The Greek Polis: Image and Reality
War with Persia
The Golden Age of Athenian Culture
    Historians
    Philosophers
    Dramatists
The Limits of City-state Democracy
    From City-state to Small Empire
    The Peloponnesian War
The Empire of Alexander the Great
The Conquests of Philip
The Reign of Alexander the Great
The Legacies of Alexander
Empire-building: What Difference Does It Make?
 
CHAPTER 6
Romeand the Barbarians: The Rise and Dismemberment of Empire
753 B.C.E.-1453 C.E. 162
From Hill Town to Republic, 753-133 B.C.E.
Patricians and Plebeians in the
Early Republic
    The Struggle of the Orders
The Senate of Rome
Roman Military Power
The Expansion of the Republic
The Punic Wars
    The “New Wisdom”
Further Expansion
    The Eastern Mediterranean
The Politics of Imperial Rule
Citizens of Rome
The Politics of Private Life
The Roman Family
Class Conflict: Urban Splendor and Squalor
Attempts at Reform
    “Bread and Circuses”
Slavery in Roman Life
The End of the Republic
Generals in Politics
The Dictatorship of Julius Caesar
The Roman Principate, 30 B.C.E.-330 C.E.
Family Life in the Age of Augustus
The Military under Augustus
The Roman Empire Expands
Economic and Trade Policies
    Supplying Rome
    Building Cities
    Engineering Triumphs
    Luxury Trades
The Golden Age of Greco-Roman Culture
    Stoicism
Religion in Imperial Rome
    Mystery Religions
    Romeand the Jews
    Romeand the Early Christians
The Dismemberment of the Roman Empire
Invaders at the Gates
Decline and Dismemberment
    The Crisis of the Third Century
    The Fragmentation of Authority
Causes of the Decline and Fall
The Eastern Empire, 330-1453 C.E.
Resurgence under Justinian
Religious Struggles
A Millennium of Byzantine Strength
The Legacy of the Roman Empire: What Difference Does It Make?
 
CHAPTER 7
China
Fracture and Unification: The Qin, Han, Sui, and Tang Dynasties
200 B.C.E.-900 C.E.
The Qin Dynasty
Military Power and Mobilization
Economic Power
Administrative Power
Competing Ideologies of Empire
    Confucianism
    Legalism
    Daoism The Struggle Between Legalism and Confucianism
    The Mandate of Heaven
The Fall of the Qin Dynasty
The Han Dynasty
A Confucian Bureaucracy
Military Power and Diplomacy
Population and Migration
Economic Power
Fluctuations in Administrative Power
    An Interregnum
    A Weakened Han Dynasty
    Peasant Revolt and the Fall of the Han
Disintegration and Reunification
Ecology and Culture
Buddhism Reaches China
Reunification under the Sui and Tang Dynasties
    The Short-lived Sui Dynasty
    Arts and Technology under the Tang Dynasty
Imperial China
The West and Northwest
The South and Southwest
Vietnam
Korea
Japan
    Immigration and Cultural Influences
Legacies for the Future: What Difference Do They Make?
Differences
    Geopolitical
    Ideological
    Longevity and Persistence
    Policy and Powers of Assimilation
    Language Policy
    Ideology and Cultural Cohesion
    Influence on Neighbors
Similarities
    Relations with Barbarians
    Religious Policies
    The Role of the Emperor
    Gender Relationships and the Family
    The Significance of Imperial Armies
    Overextension
    Public Works Projects
    The Concentration of Wealth
    Policies for and against Individual Mobility
    Revolts

    Peasant Flight
 
CHAPTER 8
Indian Empires: Cultural Cohesion in a Divided Subcontinent
1500 B.C.E.-1100 C.E.
New Arrivals in South Asia
Chronicles of the Aryan Immigrants
    The Vedas
    The Mahabharataand the Ramayana
The Establishment of States
The Empires of India
The Maurya Empire
    Government under the Maurya Dynasty
    Asoka, India's Buddhist Emperor
    Successor States Divide the Empire
The Gupta Empire
    A Golden Age of Learning
    The Resurgence of Hinduism
Invasions End the Age of Empires
The Hunas and their Legacy
Regional Diversity and Power
Sea Trade and Cultural Influence: From Rome to Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia: “Greater India”
India, China, and Rome: Empires and Intermediate Institutions
Administration
International Relations
Invasion of the Hunas
Local Institutions and the State
Indian Empires:What Difference Do They Make?
TURNING POINT: Politics and Religion
 

PART FOUR
THE RISE OF WORLD RELIGIONS (2500 B.C.E.-1500 C.E.)
Not by Bread Alone: Religion in World History 
CHAPTER 9
Hinduism and Buddhism
The Sacred Subcontinent: The Spread of Religion in India and Beyond
1500 B.C.E.-1200 C.E.
Examining Religious Beliefs
Hinduism
The Origins of Hinduism
Sacred Geography and Pilgrimage
The Central Beliefs of Hinduism
    The Rigveda
    Caste
    The Brahmanasand Upanishads
    The Great Epics
    The Puranas
Temples and Shrines
Religion and Rule
Hinduism in Southeast Asia
Buddhism
The Origins of Buddhism
The Life of the Buddha
The Sangha
The Emergence of Mahayana Buddhism
The Decline of Buddhism in India
Jainism
Buddhism in China
    Arrival in China: The Silk Route
    Relations with Daoism and Confucianism
    Buddhism under the Tang Dynasty
    Buddhism's Decline in China
Buddhism in Japan
    Shintoism
    Buddhism's Arrival in Japan
    Buddhism's Role in Unifying Japan
    Japanese Buddhism Develops New Forms
    Lasting Buddhist Elements in Japanese Society
Comparing Buddhism and Hinduism
Hinduism and Buddhism: What Difference Do They Make? 
CHAPTER 10
Judaism and Christianity: Peoples of the Bible: God's Evolution in West Asia and Europe
1700 B.C.E.-1100 C.E.
Judaism
The Sacred Scriptures
Essential Beliefs of Judaism in Early Scriptures
The Later Books of Jewish Scripture
    Rule by Judges and by Kings
    The Teachings of the Prophets: Morality and Hope
The Evolution of the Image of God
Patriarchy and Gender Relations
Defeat, Exile, and Redefinition
Minority-Majority Relations in the Diaspora
Christianity
Christianity Emerges from Judaism
Jesus' Life, Teachings, and Disciples
    Adapting Rituals to New Purposes
    Overturning the Old Order
    Jesus and the Jewish Establishment
    Miracles and Resurrection
The Growth of the Early Church
    Paul Organizes the Early Church
    The Christian Calendar
    Gender Relations
From Persecution to Triumph
    The Conversion of Constantine
    How had Christianity Succeeded?
Doctrine: Definition and Dispute
    Battles Over Dogma
Christianity in the Wake of Empire
The Conversion of the Barbarians
Decentralized Power and Monastic Life
The Church Divides into East and West
    The Split between Rome and Constantinople
    New Areas Adopt Orthodox Christianity
Christianity in Western Europe
    The Pope Allies with the Franks
    Charlemagne Revives the Idea of Empire
    The Attempt at Empire Fails
Judaism and Early Christianity: What Difference Do They Make? 
CHAPTER 11
Islam: Submission to Allah: Muslim Civilization Bridges the World
570 C.E.-1500 C.E.
The Origins of Islam
The Prophet: His Life and Teaching
The Five Pillars of Islam
Responses to Muhammad
    The Hijraand the Islamic Calendar
    Muhammad Extends his Authority
    Connections to Other Monotheistic Faiths
Successors to the Prophet
Civil War: Religious Conflict and the Sunni-Shi'a Division
The Umayyad Caliphs Build an Empire
The Third Civil War and the Abbasid Caliphs
The Weakening of the Caliphate
    The Emergence of Quasi-independent States
    Seljuk Turks and their Sultanate
    The Mongols and the Destruction of the Caliphate
Spiritual, Religious, and Cultural Flowering
Islam Reaches New Peoples
    India
    Southeast Asia
    Sub-Saharan Africa
Law Provides an Institutional Foundation
Sufis Provide Religious Mysticism
    The Role of Mysticism
Intellectual Achievements
    History
    Philosophy
    Mathematics, Astronomy, and Medicine
The Extension of Technology
City Design and Architecture
Relations with Non-Muslims
Dhimmi Status
The Crusades
A Golden Age in Spain
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam: What Difference Do They Make?
TURNING POINT: Religion and Trade 
 
PART FIVE
GLOBAL TRADE: THE BEGINNING OF THE MODERN WORLD (1300-1700)
Trade, Traders, Disease, and Migration
 
CHAPTER 12
Establishing World Trade Routes: The Geography and Philosophies of Early Economic Systems
1300-1500
World Trade: A Historical Analysis
Trade in the Americas Before 1500
The Inca Empire
Central America and Mexico
Trade in Sub-Saharan Africa
West Africa
East Africa
Asia's Complex Trade Patterns
The South Pacific
The South China Sea
The Indian Ocean
    Arab Traders
    Islam Spreads
China: A Magnet for Traders
International Trade
    The Voyages of Zheng He
Internal Trade
Central Asia: The Mongols and the Silk Routes
Intercontinental Trade Flourishes
Chinggis Khan
The End of the Mongol Empire
From Mongol to Ming: Dynastic Transition
World Trade Routes Before Columbus: What Difference Do They Make? 
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The Opening of the Atlantic and the Pacific: Economic Growth, Religion and Renaissance, Global Connections
1300-1500
Economic and Social Changes in Europe
Workers and the Landed Gentry
Textiles and Social Conflict
Business and the Church
Plague and Social Unrest
The Renaissance
The Roots of the Renaissance
    Christian Scholars
    Universities
    Humanism
    New Artistic Styles
Developments in Technology
A New World
The Early Explorers, 800-1000
Down Africa's Atlantic Coast
Crossing the Atlantic
Crossing the Pacific
Legacies to the Future:What Difference Do They Make?
 

About the author

Howard Spodek received his B.A. degree from Columbia University (1963), majoring in history and specializing in Columbia's newly designed program in Asian Studies.  He received his M.A. (1966) and Ph.D. (1972) from the University of Chicago, majoring in history and specializing in India. His first trip to India was on a Fulbright Fellowship, 1964-66, and he has spent a total of some seven years studying and teaching in India. He has also traveled widely throughout the United States, Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. He has been a faculty member at Temple University since 1972, appointed Full Professor in 1984. He was awarded Temple's Great
Teacher award in 1993.

Spodek's work in world history began in 1988 when he became Academic Director of a comprehensive, innovative program working with teachers in the School District of Philadelphia to improve their knowledge base in world history and facilitate a rewriting of the world history program in the schools. Immediately following this program, he became principal investigator of a program that brought college professors and high school teachers together to reconsider, revise, and, in many cases, initiate the teaching of world history in several of the colleges and universities in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. Those projects led directly to the writing of the first edition of the current text (1997).

Howard Spodek has published extensively on urbanization in India, including Urban-Rural Integration in Regional Development (1976); Urban Form and Meaning in South-East Asia (editor, with Doris Srinivasan, 1993); and a wide array of articles, including analyses of working women's organizations. In addition he wrote and produced the documentary film, Ahmedabad (1983). He has written on his experiences with world history faculty at the college and high school levels in articles in The History Teacher (1992, 1995). He has received funding for his research, writing, teaching, and film from Fulbright, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Science Foundation, the American Institute of Indian Studies, and the Smithsonian Institution.

Product details

• Authors: Howard Spodek
• Publisher: Pearson Education (US)
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 31.12.2018
• No. of pages: 512
• Dimensions: 211 mm x 254 mm x 17 mm
• Weight: 954 g
• Illustrations: black & white illustrations, colour illustrations, colour tables, maps, figures
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > General, dictionaries; Weltgeschichte