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History of the Ancient World: A Global Perspective cover art

History of the Ancient World: A Global Perspective

Written by: Gregory S. Aldrete, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Gregory S. Aldrete
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Publisher's Summary

The ancient world has cast a long shadow, influencing our customs and religious beliefs, our laws, and the form of our governments. It has taught us when and how we make war or pursue peace. It has shaped the buildings we live and work in and the art we hang on our walls. It has given us the calendar that organizes our year and has left its mark on the games we play.

Grasping the full scope of your bequest from the ancient world can't help but give you a more nuanced base from which to make decisions and choose pathways in your own life. These 48 lectures take you on a multidisciplinary journey that ranges across not only the traditional domains of politics and war that are normally the province of history courses, but also those of religion, philosophy, architecture and the visual arts, literature, and science, and more.

You'll examine the ancient world's greatest civilizations from the Mediterranean, Asia, and the Americas - including those of Rome, Greece, China, Persia, India, and the Maya - not in isolation but in the full context of where they came from, the cultures that flourished around them at the same time, and the civilizations that were to come from them. Taking a comparative approach, Professor Aldrete's course includes in-depth analyses of not only key individuals and historical moments, but also history's most important themes, from the nature of rulership and the evolution of religion and philosophy to the practice of warfare and the expression of power through art and architecture.

With its mix of nuanced interpretation, vivid description, and constant attention to exploring history as a coherent whole, this is sure to be one of the most informative and thought-provoking history courses you have ever taken.

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

©2011 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2011 The Great Courses

What listeners say about History of the Ancient World: A Global Perspective

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  • KZ
  • 2022-10-03

Awesome book!

Listening it for the 3rd time 😄 so much interesting info and details on all human civilizations of the past!

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Superb analysis and presentation!

Loved it! A comprehensive, insightful analysis of world history from the dawn of history up to the 9th century A. D. A tour de force superbly read by the narrator.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Clear and concise

The narrator was excellent and the pace was great. There is lots of information and I recommend listening to it more than once.

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3 people found this helpful

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Great audiobook.

I enjoyed every single chapter... specially the global perspective. My congratulations to the author. Thanks.

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1 person found this helpful

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Very Informative! Thoroughly enjoyed!

I really enjoyed this professors delivery of historical knowledge. I found him to be easy to listen to and even funny at times.

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thoroughly enjoyable and interesting

Each 30 minute lecture is recorded in a very concise way that sounds consistent enough to seem like he could have been talking for 20 hrs straight. There are many interesting facts and it gets detailed enough not to seem like broad strokes are being made across wide passages of time and peoples. I learned things in all subjects even though I have learned more in depth histories on specific subjects. Another detail I appreciated is that it stays pretty consistently in chronological order which in contrast to other lectures in this collection is a lot easier to keep track of since it doesn't jump back and forth from century to century. The authors quirky nerdiness is endearing and interesting and overall I enjoyed this one above many this collection had to offer.

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Excellent lecture!

Informative, interesting, an easy listen. Definitely will "take this course" again haha Such a great lecture!

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Captivating

Loved every minute of this course. A must listen for anyone interested in ancient history.

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Very enjoyable for the amateur enthusiast

I really enjoy ancient history but couldn't be farther from a scholar. These lectures are easy to follow and really enjoyable. If you are just looking for some fascinating bullet points of ancient history this book is grest.

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    3 out of 5 stars

An OK outline of some history sometimes.

A European's over compensation for our "ignorance" of history other then Greek, Roman & European.

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2 people found this helpful