The Cultures of the West, Volume Two: Since 1350: A History

by Clifford R. Backman

The Cultures of the A History focuses on the ways in which the major ideas and passions of Western culture developed, internally, and how they interacted with the broader world-for good and for ill. The development of such key ideas as religion, science, and philosophy form the central narrative of this book.

The Cultures of the West stands apart from other textbooks in a variety of ways, the first being thematic unity. What did people think and believe, throughout our history, about human nature, the right way to live, God, the best forms of government, or the meaning of human life? Rather than maintaining a single interpretive stance, author Clifford R. Backman relies upon a consistent set of What did people think and feel throughout the centuries about politics, science, religion, and sex? How did they come to their positions regarding the right way to live? Backman's many years of experience in the classroom have informed his approach-students respond to engaging questions more than they are inspired by facts.



* Single author clearly and compellingly written by an experienced teacher and scholar who knows how to emphasize intriguing and eye-opening elements of Western Civilization
* A book with a point of even if disagreed with, the text will at engage students' minds
* Exceptional coverage of cultural history , especially the history of what people thought and felt throughout the history of the West
* "Greater West" approach that integrates in sustained fashion coverage of Islam and the Middle East
* Superior coverage of Jewish history and the history of women
* Extensive primary source excerpts integrated directly into the text, many of which have been translated by the author
* Footnotes featuring surprising, engaging information usually neglected in other texts

Genres: History, Textbooks

912 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2012

Reviews

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty solid textbook for a western history course - I used it to teach a course from 1500 to the present this fall. It's cheap (relatively) for students, very readable, and covers ground well. Though there is a particular focus on religion and ideologies.

"Cultures of the west" is a problematic term in a lot of ways, and rather outdated as a concept for a course. Backman does address this to a certain extent, by incorporating broader aspects of the Mediterranean world (the Islamic world is at least tangentially incorporated, which is better than many textbooks). But it still does remain rather unfortunately focused on England, France, and modern-day Germany and Italy.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

A super fast-paced, incredibly vague, slightly informative history textbook. The author is biased in his opinions and only writes about the bits of history he feels are important, therefore, a LOT is left out of this textbook. Less opinion and more history would have made this a better textbook.

[Karrie Aslanyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This textbook is incredible for me. After staunchly avoiding reading or learning any type of history now that I've begun I can't get enough and I know this textbook has inspired that. For me it covers such a long history in an energetic, coherent, thoughtful and incredibly balanced way. Clifford Backman has taken me places and shown me things and people that has made me look at the world, the people living in it, past, present, future in a compassionate and engaged, curious and enthusiastic way. It is so comprehensive. And he does so in an engaging language, peppering the text with surprise anecdotes or particulars that make the text come alive, such as describing the temperature of summertime Arabia being so hot that traders would have to travel by moonlight to get any traveling done at all. These images bring me closer to the people I'm reading about. I can't tell how many times I've googled search the author's name in an attempt to know more about his background, somewhat unsuccessfully, just to try to understand how he wrote this book. How long he studies the material. I give this textbook and A+

[Chris Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is what a friend calls an adult textbook for a Western Civ type class. Backman has done a magnificent job in covering, not only the mainstays, but also presenting an inclusive history for women and Muslims (in particular) as well. He is very evenhanded in presenting opposing views without firing the bias of the reader. It is an overview of course, but it is a very striking overview covering the Renaissance to Daesh. There needs to be more proofreading on the dates in identifications in particular. LBJ was born in 1908, not 1918 for example.

[Amanda Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Compared to the typical red state propaganda text books I have been exposed to throughout my education, I appreciated this book. However, since I am passionate about gaining information, I found it a bit trying at times to decipher between fact and opinion- a dilemma I have come across in every American text book I have read- but this occurred much less in this text than any other Historical books I have been assigned to read in the past, so at least I try to appreciate that. As with anything, perception and interpretation are in constant limbo.