A History of Knowledge
Encyclopedia
A History of Knowledge (1991, ISBN 0-345-37316-2) is a book on intellectual history, with emphasis on the western civilization
, written by Charles Van Doren
, a longtime editor of the Encyclopædia Britannica
. It is a history of human thought, condensing over 5000 years of philosophy, learning, and belief systems into just 400 pages. It surveys the key historical trends and breakthroughs connecting the globalizing human landscape of the 20th century all the way back to the scattered roots of human civilization in India
, Egypt
, Mesopotamia
, China
, Greece
, and Rome
.
For a sense of the tone, the first section is entitled "The Wisdom of the Ancients" and begins, "By the time written history began, some fifty centuries ago, mankind had learned much more than our primitive ancestors knew."
The book's last chapter focuses on the potential developments of the 21st century. It also contains biographies of many notable historical figures.
2. The Greek Explosion
3. What the Romans Knew
4. Light in the Dark Ages
5. The Middle Ages: The Great Explosion
6. What was Reborn in the Renaissance?
7. Europe Reaches Out
8. The Invention of the Scientific method
9. An Age of Revolutions
10. The Nineteenth Century: Prelude to Modernity
11. The World in 1914
12. The Twentieth Century: The Triumph of Democracy
13. The Twentieth Century: Science and Technology
14. The Twentieth Century: Art and the Media
15. The Next Hundred Years
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
, written by Charles Van Doren
Charles Van Doren
Charles Lincoln Van Doren is an American intellectual, writer, and editor who was involved in a television quiz show scandal in the 1950s...
, a longtime editor of the Encyclopædia Britannica
Encyclopædia Britannica
The Encyclopædia Britannica , published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia that is available in print, as a DVD, and on the Internet. It is written and continuously updated by about 100 full-time editors and more than 4,000 expert...
. It is a history of human thought, condensing over 5000 years of philosophy, learning, and belief systems into just 400 pages. It surveys the key historical trends and breakthroughs connecting the globalizing human landscape of the 20th century all the way back to the scattered roots of human civilization in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, and Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
.
For a sense of the tone, the first section is entitled "The Wisdom of the Ancients" and begins, "By the time written history began, some fifty centuries ago, mankind had learned much more than our primitive ancestors knew."
The book's last chapter focuses on the potential developments of the 21st century. It also contains biographies of many notable historical figures.
Chapter Titles
1. Wisdom of the Ancients2. The Greek Explosion
3. What the Romans Knew
4. Light in the Dark Ages
5. The Middle Ages: The Great Explosion
6. What was Reborn in the Renaissance?
7. Europe Reaches Out
8. The Invention of the Scientific method
9. An Age of Revolutions
10. The Nineteenth Century: Prelude to Modernity
11. The World in 1914
12. The Twentieth Century: The Triumph of Democracy
13. The Twentieth Century: Science and Technology
14. The Twentieth Century: Art and the Media
15. The Next Hundred Years