Writing and Civilization: From Ancient Worlds to Modernity
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Writing and Civilization: From Ancient Worlds to Modernity
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Narrated by:
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Marc Zender
About this listen
At just over 5,000 years old, writing is actually a relatively recent invention. It has become so central to the way we communicate and live, however, that it often seems as if writing has always existed.
But the question remains: Who invented writing, and why?
In these 24 fascinating lectures, you'll trace the remarkable saga of the invention and evolution of "visible speech," from its earliest origins to its future in the digital age. Your guide is an accomplished professor and epigrapher who whisks you around the globe to explore how an array of sophisticated writing systems developed, then were adopted and adapted by surrounding cultures.
Along the way, you'll visit the great early civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, China, Japan, and the Americas, and you'll see how deciphering ancient scripts is a little like cracking secret codes - only far more difficult.
You'll be spellbound as you hear accounts of the breathtaking moments when the decipherment of ancient scripts broke centuries of silence. And you'll marvel at fascinating objects once shrouded in mystery, including the iconic Rosetta stone.
Writing and Civilization offers the chance to not only discover the history of ancient writing systems, but also the rare opportunity to actually hear those scripts read aloud and to learn the meaning of their messages hidden in plain sight.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.
©2013 The Great Courses (P)2013 The Teaching Company, LLCListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about Writing and Civilization: From Ancient Worlds to Modernity
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- cristinagps
- 05-01-21
intensive and full of amazing details
such an interesting and comprehensive bunch of subject areas treated. really interesting full of examples.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Rockesh Gurtu
- 08-02-23
Awesome!
it was very informative, I learnt a lot! but I was surprised andI wish there was more about the Indian writing systems because there are so many,at least devanagari script
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Andy Simmons
- 24-11-21
A brilliant overview of the subject
Like all of the Great Courses that I’ve listened to, this is a great overview of the subject. I missed out a bit as I listened to it on the go and you really need to review the PDF to get the impact. The lecturer is very clear, knowledgeable and easy to listen to.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- P. Donovan
- 30-10-17
A fascinating overview of writing
This is a fascinating review of a complex evolving science that affects us all. The lectures explore writing in socio-historical contexts and examine a wide range of scripts. The narration is clear abd informative.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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- Mr. M. G. Stroud
- 02-09-22
Comprehensive and detailed
In measured North American tones, the author picks his way through millennia of writing and language. Interesting stuff!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 03-02-23
Fascinating
I really enjoyed this course. Marc Zender makes the subject matter accessible and interesting to find out about. He is a great lecturer.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- L Minnema
- 24-10-21
the title is misleading
the title is misleading, should have been "writing and deciphering" because it is not about the introduction of writing changing civilizations
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 29-06-23
Interesting but not ideal as audio book
Interesting and well told. Unfortunately several times refer to illustrations that are not in the accompanying PDF. Enjoyed it despite of that though.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- Catriona
- 29-03-16
Accessible and entertaining
Any audiobook which has me choosing to listen to it rather than Radio 4 when I'm driving must be good.
Initially the information given was more along the lines of what I'd already heard and half remembered or sometimes what seemed obvious once explained; but more and more the course took me into unfamiliar territory, yet remained easy to listen to.
It certainly also swept away some preconceptions that I had about Mayan and Aztec scripts which I gphad not particularly thought about, but had not realised were so developed.
I would say the one draw back is that although there is a PDF which can be downloaded with the book this must be the audio track of a video course. There are a number of references in later sections where it is clear Zender is showing something, for example he spoke of different styles of copying Mayan script, but we only have the final version in the pdf. This should should not put off those who have a general interest in the subject as he gives a good verbal description, but might be more of a problem to someone who is listening as part of a formal study programme. This is the only reason I've marked it down slightly.
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9 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- Pauline Huang
- 18-10-20
Very interesting yet there's something missing
The lectures are very well organized and one can immediately feel Professor Zender's enormous knowledge and grip on the subjects. Besides, he also transmits his enthusiasm and passion about the topics. Yet this course is not for the fainthearted. It is very easy to lose track of what he is talking about. I think it will be much easier to follow Professor Zender's lectures in video form.
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