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Origins of Great Ancient Civilizations

By: Kenneth W. Harl, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Kenneth W. Harl
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Summary

Locales like Mesopotamia or the Indus Valley, peoples like the Hittites or Assyrians, or rulers like Sargon, Hammurabi, and Darius are part of a long-dead antiquity, so shrouded with dust that we might be tempted to skip over them entirely, preferring to race forward along history's timeline in search of the riches we know will be found in our studies of Greece and Rome.

But, according to Professor Harl, these civilizations, "act as the cultural basis for many of the civilizations that will emerge on the Eurasian landmass and will dictate the destinies of many of the people living today on the globe." These remote, ancient civilizations stand behind the traditions of Greece, so it is critical to understand these great societies in order to better understand those that would come later - including our own.

These 12 fast-paced lectures cover many civilizations that may only receive a few lines of cursory discussion in the average Western civilization textbook. Beginning in the Bronze Age and the emergence of urban-based literate civilizations, the story continues through the demise of Persia's great empire at the hands of the Greeks.

Along the way, you'll examine advances such as the invention and evolution of writing, the development of vast empires dependent not only on military might but on laws and administration, the growth of trade, and the contributions of the Hebrews to the religious and ethical future of Western civilization.

History lovers will appreciate this course for its deep insights and its rock-solid foundation for deeper exploration.

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

©2005 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2005 The Great Courses
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excellent introduction to the subject

Very well structured and fascinating subject. The teacher was concise and clear in his explanations

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Uh something something uh

Hard to believe uh if the lecturer is uh qualified in this uh very broad topic if he himself uh isn’t able uh to speak a sentence without uhs.

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Great Introductory Course

Kenneth Harl is one of the finest lecturers of the teaching company, and this short introduction in no way falls short of that high standard.

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Fascinating story of ancient civilizations

One more beautiful series of lectures created and narrated by prof. Harl! Highly recommended for history fans.

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Covering for lack is specialisation

The professor is not a professor of this topic, which is clear in many places - not least in his lack of linguistic knowledge. What’s worse, he covers for it by pandering to a contemporary Israel mythos, extrapolating the importance and resilience of the Hebrews back in time, all the while making supposedly “apolitical” remarks whose only bearing and relevance is on modern times.

There are many good intros to this topic out there - choose one of them, rather than this one.

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1 person found this helpful