3 Review(s)

Designed to bring useful and engaging material into world history classrooms, this 3-volume set offers a rich collection of historical documents and illustrations, providing insight into daily life in major world cultures throughout history. The set encompasses a global perspective, including information on major cultures from all continents, while maintaining a special focus on the Western cultures and their histories. Hundreds of annotated primary documents and over 100 images introduce aspects of daily life throughout the world, from antiquity to the present, including: Economic life Intellectual life Material life Political life Spiritual life Recreational life Analytical introductions explain the key features and background of each document, and create links between documents to illustrate the interrelationship of thoughts and customs across time and cultures. Volume 1: The Ancient World covers the major civilizations from ancient Sumeria (3000 BCE) through the fall of Imperial Rome (476 CE), including Egypt, Greece, and Israel, and also covers China and India during the births of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. Volume 2: The Middle Ages and Renaissance covers the development of European culture from the Germanic migrations of the fifth century CE through the university movement of the late middle ages, through the sixteenth-century growth of global empires and the collapse of the kingship in seventeenth-century England. Also covered are the Native empires of the Americas and the rise of Islamic culture throughout the Middle East and Africa. Volume 3: The Early Modern and Modern Worlds spans the period from the Enlightenment, through the founding of the United States, throughthe modern Internet era and global economy. The volume also includes colonial and post-colonial life in Latin America and Africa and the growth of international cultures in Asia. Document sources include: The code of Hammurabi The Manu Smrti, on family roles in ancient India Seneca's On Mercy Josephus's Jewish Antiquities The Koran Dante's Divine Comedy Bernal Diaz del Castillo's The True History of the Conquest of Mexico The Travels of Marco Polo Brahmagupta's principles of mathematics and astronomy The Mayan Popul Vuh (the Book of the People) The diary of a Southern plantation wife during the Civil War Letters from an American soldier in Vietnam Thematically organized sections are supplemented with a glossary of terms, a glossary of names, a timeline of key events, and an annotated bibliography. Document selections are guided by the National Standards for World History, providing a direct tie to the curriculum. This collection is an invaluable source for students of material history, social history, and world history.