Chris Wickham the Inheritance of Rome Chapters Review
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| Author | Christopher Wickham |
|---|---|
| Subject | Medieval studies |
| Publisher | Viking Developed |
| Publication date | 30 July 2009 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 688 pp (hardcover) |
| ISBN | 978-0670020980 |
The Inheritance of Rome: A History of Europe from 400 to g is a 2009 history book by English historian Christopher Wickham at the University of Oxford. It is a broad history of the Early on Centre Ages, the period after what is normally called the fall of the Western Roman Empire (though multiple reviewers debate Wickham is critical of the view that Rome roughshod). The book received mostly positive reviews.
Reception [edit]
A reviewer at the University of Oxford said Wickham's assay is stiff for challenging "two of the predominant misconceptions held about the Middle Ages; firstly, that the 10 centuries or so that spanned betwixt the autumn of Rome and Renaissance were wholly unsophisticated and brutal [...] and secondly that this catamenia acted as the birthing of what nosotros may telephone call a 'modern nation'". The reviewer also called the book "remarkably piece of cake to pick upward and read [...] a gentle but engaging introduction into [the] period".[ane]
John R. Vallely of the Historical Novel Gild said that while the book is for somewhat knowledgeable readers rather than novices, such readers "will be impressed at his analysis of a earth staggered by political turbulence but resilient in its response."[2] Tyler Cowen lauded it as one of the all-time history books he had ever read, praising its "[fluid] integration of historical and archeological sources" and its "illuminating discussion of how family control made information technology incentive-compatible to invest then much wealth in monasteries", among other things.[3]
In The Telegraph, Dominic Sandbrook dubbed The Inheritance of Rome a "worthy competitor" to Gibbon's history, commending "Wickham'southward awe-inspiring control of his sources" and "vast geographical and comparative range, and so that we become a sense not only of i gild, simply of half a dozen or more". He called the author "a pithy and compelling guide through the narrative complexities of Constantinople politics" and praised Wickham for showing how both the Byzantium and the Abbasid Caliphate "were the heirs of Rome". Sandbrook described the volume as "a pinnacle work of historical scholarship" that illuminates murky corners of the fourth dimension menstruum.[4]
The Independent's Boyd Tonkin wrote that "this epic of European history betwixt 400 and 1000AD leaves no cliche unchallenged." He said that "gripping as Wickham'due south narratives evidence from Scotland to Byzantium, his impatience with myth for a fourth dimension leaves u.s. with history as i damn thing later on another. Only at the finish does this majestic panorama specify the [...] trends behind the tales."[5] A reviewer for Publishers Weekly billed the volume as "a magisterial narrative of the political, economic, cultural and religious fabrics [...] Wickham's accomplishment contributes richly to our flick of this often narrowly understood period."[6]
A reviewer for The New Yorker asserted that while "a single volume [...] using only a slender and unreliable documentary record and no narrative crutches, [covering] six centuries and at least 7 major rival powers" sounds similar an historiographical stunt, Wickham "largely pulls it off". He credits Wickham with striking comparisons such as valuations in Ireland (slave women and cows) versus valuations in other early on medieval societies (coins).[7] Matthew Hoskin, an historian at the University of Edinburgh, wrote a highly positive review in 2014 and described The Inheritance of Rome equally a "bout-de-force of narrative history", saying the author makes a big story of interlocking stories readable by "advisedly [choosing] not to tell everything at once." He besides said that Wickham remembering "the importance of Eastern Europe and the Middle East for the development of history in this catamenia makes information technology stand out in relation to other books about the era. Indeed, the breadth of The Inheritance of Rome is phenomenal."[8]
Some reviewers were less enthusiastic. The Guardian's Ian Mortimer praised the book for providing information that challenges common generalizations most the menstruation and said, "The breadth of reading is phenomenal, the knowledge displayed is awe-inspiring, and the attention quietly given to critical theory and the postmodern questioning of prove is both careful and sincere." However, Mortimer besides argued that Wickham overly stresses the difficulty of knowing the specifics of the catamenia and is too wary about offering interpretations that might face criticism. He besides said the author gives too little attention to such aspects of the period every bit battles, private life, and the aesthetics of artifacts, stating that ultimately "all one can see is blurred masses, not people."[9]
Laura Schneiderman said in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that Wickham "sheds piffling light on the murk" and generally presents events without examining motivations behind them. She said that the piece of work "reads like a lengthy bookish paper that assumes the reader already knows a great deal about the period", and that the writer "organizes his chapters around the points he wants to brand rather than around coherent narratives."[10]
Michael Patrick Brady of PopMatters described information technology every bit "a very meticulous, overwhelmingly detailed account [...] Information technology is, at times, exhausting and cluttered, merely besides laden with interesting passages that shed light on this volatile period". He said that "the most tiresome" chapters are those on cultures organized immediately afterwards the Roman Empire's fragmentation, due to the chapters' reliance on archaeological evidence. He criticized the section on the Merovingian era as "replete with names and dates, only utterly lacking in pregnant context, motivation, or revelation", considering this bear witness the Early Middle Ages are indeed a menstruum obscured by a dearth of reliable information despite Wickham'due south view. Brady called the portions on the more stable polities "a fuller, more colorful delineation of their inner workings [...] much more enlightening", ultimately crediting the author with as thorough a depiction of the time menstruation as is possible.[11]
References [edit]
- ^ "The Inheritance of Rome". Academy College Oxford . Retrieved 2020-08-19 .
- ^ Vallely, John R. "The Inheritance of Rome". Historical Novel Society . Retrieved 2020-08-19 .
- ^ Cowen, Tyler (2009-08-22). "*The Inheritance of Rome*". Marginal REVOLUTION . Retrieved 2020-08-21 .
- ^ Sandbrook, Dominic (2009-02-02). "The Inheritance of Rome past Chris Wickham - review". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-08-20 .
- ^ Tonkin, Boyd (2010-01-29). "The Inheritance of Rome, By Chris Wickham". The Independent . Retrieved 2020-08-xix .
- ^ "Nonfiction Book Review: The Inheritance of Rome: Illuminating the Nighttime Ages, 400–k by Chris Wickham, Author . Viking $35 (650p) ISBN 978-0-670-02098-0". PublishersWeekly.com . Retrieved 2020-08-xx .
- ^ "The Inheritance of Rome". The New Yorker. 2009-08-31. Retrieved 2020-08-xx .
- ^ Hoskin, Matthew (August 2014). "A Far Reaching Inheritance: Review of Chris Wickham, The Inheritance of Rome: A History of Europe from 400 to 1000". St Francis Magazine. ten.
- ^ Mortimer, Ian (2009-01-24). "Review: The Inheritance of Rome by Chris Wickham". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-08-20 .
- ^ Schneiderman, Laura (2009-eleven-29). "Nonfiction: "The Inheritance of Rome: Illuminating the Dark Ages" by Chris Wickham". Pittsburgh Mail-Gazette . Retrieved 2020-08-21 .
- ^ Brady, Michael Patrick (2009-09-29). "The Inheritance of Rome by Chris Wickham". PopMatters . Retrieved 2020-08-twenty .
Editions [edit]
- Hardcover, Viking Adult, ISBN 978-0670020980
- Paperback, ISBN 978-0143117421
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Inheritance_of_Rome
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