EAN: 9780753559734

THE WEST - NAOÍSE MAC SWEENEY KARTONIERT (TB)

'A truly global perspective of the past. A fantastic achievement' Peter Frankopan  bestselling
author of The Silk Roads'Bright  expansive  and iconoclastic  this deliciously witty book has
the potential to upset the applecart of Western Civilisation itself... Magnificent' Prof.
Suzannah Lipscomb _________________A radical new account of how the idea of the West has shaped
our history  told through the stories of fourteen fascinating lives. We tend to imagine Western
Civilisation as a golden thread  leading through the centuries from classical antiquity to the
countries of the modern West - a cultural genealogy that connects Plato to NATO. It is an idea
often invoked in the speeches of politicians and the rhetoric of journalists  and which remains
deeply embedded in popular culture. But what if it is wrong? In an epic sweep through the ages
prize-winning archaeologist and historian Naoíse Mac Sweeney charts the history of this idea -
an idea of enormous political significance  but which is nonetheless factually incorrect and
obscures the wondrous  rich diversity of our past. She reveals how this particular version of
Western history was invented  how it has been used to justify imperialism and racism  and why
it is no longer ideologically fit for purpose today. Told through the lives of fourteen
fascinating historical figures - including a formidable Roman matriarch  an unconventional
Islamic scholar  an enslaved African American poetess and a British prime minister with Homeric
aspirations - The West is a groundbreaking retelling of Western history and a powerful
corrective to one of the greatest myths of all: Western Civilisation.

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