The first edition of the novel was published in 1975, and was written by will durant. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. I read his story of philosophy as well and found it to be a good overview of western thought. It was the durants 11 volume, bestselling series that put simon and schuster on the map, making it one of the biggest publishing houses in the us. Best set of books ever written about our beginnings. Our oriental heritage is the first volume of an 11 volume series. The story of civilization, by husband and wife will and ariel durant, is an 11 volume set of books covering western history for the general reader. Other articles where the story of civilization is discussed.
The story of civilization 11 volume set by will durant. The oxford university publishing series on american history about 11 volumes. It was written over a lifetime, and it totals two million words across nearly 10,000 pages. He was earlier noted for the story of philosophy 1926, described as a groundbreaking work. The full eleven volumes of the story of civilization, will and ariel durants popular history of mostly the western world, take up exactly 22 of shelf space, fitting perfectly on the top shelf of one of the unfinished pine bookcases i bought for my apartment during my vap year at tarleton state university. And since probably only a handful of thingers have enough other books to cover all 11, and since the set is an inexpensive acquisition, then i recommend the set. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read. However, if you have ever thought of taking on the durants the story of civilization, you might wish to try this book on for size. A history of civilization from ancient times to the dawn of the modern age, by will durant. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 14777 pages and is available in paperback format. In her indispensable book the making of middlebrow culture, joan shelley. Our oriental heritage, life of greece, caesar and christ. It is a short book, less than 100 pages, in which they comment on lessons they have learned from history as it pertains to the earth, biology, race, character, morals, religion, economics, government, and war.
While extensive as it can be, the story of civilization was never complete, the durant couple died before its completion with 11 novels complete. Thus, after our oriental heritage came the life of greece in 1939, caesar and christ in 1944, the age of faith in 1950, the. Originally intended as the final book of the series, the story of civilization, in ended up being the penultimate volume. The life of greece, caesar and christ, and several. The story of civilization book by will and ariel durant britannica. Iow, if you have a bunch of reformation books, you do not need durants the story of civilization the reformation. The only ones ive read covertocover are our oriental heritage and the age of faith, both of which are tremendously rewarding. Will durant 18851981 was awarded the pulitzer prize 1968 and the presidential medal of freedom 1977.
But if you want one book, durant is good enough to be that one. Will and ariel durant, after spending over fifty years completing the critically acclaimed series the story of civilization, were awarded the pulitzer prize for general nonfiction in 1968. The complete story of civilization by will durant represents the most comprehensive attempt in our times to embrace the vast panorama of mans history and culture. Many academics resent and envy such crossover success, and diminish his contributions to the two fields. I love collecting all the classic books which are related to christian spiritual growth, children sciencearthistory etc. He became best known for his work the story of civilization, 11 volumes written in collaboration with his wife, ariel durant, and published between 1935 and 1975. The age of reason begins ebook by will durant, ariel. Our oriental heritage, being a history of civilization in egypt and the near east to the death. The lessons of history pdf by will durant bookspdf4free. Its impossible to find an american library that doesnt have at least one or two of the story of civilization and more likely has the whole set. Although written 60 plus years ago, the durants spent a lifetime on this labor of love. Before reading this volume i thought napoleon had a sterling reputation.
Caesar and christ, a history of roman civilization and of christianity from their. The story of civilization volumes 1 to 11 hardcover set 1963. November 5, 1885 november 7, 1981 was an american writer, historian, and philosopher. The contributions and improvement of humankind is the story of humankind. The story of civilization books by ariel durant and will durant from. I recently picked up will durants first volume of the. The story of civilization by durant, will and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The story of civilization books by ariel durant and will durant learn about the. He spent more than fifty years writing his critically acclaimed elevenvolume series, the story of civilization the later volumes written in conjunction with his wife, ariel. The full eleven volumes of the story of civilization, will and ariel. Life after death experience nde with steve gardipee, vietnam war story one of the best ndes duration. The story of civilization, volume viii ebook written by will durant, ariel durant. An interesting side note is that will durant was once a seminarian.
The age of reason begins by will durant, ariel durant and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The story of civilization, volume 1 the story of civilization, william durant. Durant was a dumb guy who contributed negatively in praising the dumb nonachievements of precolonial native tribal cultures, giving modern nostalgiacs an excuse for pursuing their fancy hat dream histories that almost entirely, or at least to an unimaginably large extent, contradict real histories as formulated by ostensibly neutral historical sources. What are yalls thoughts on will durants a story of civilization. While not finished, the story of civilization is still something to admire. Heroes of history is a book of lifeenhancing wisdom and optimism, complete with durants wit, knowledge, and.
Our oriental heritage, life of greece, caesar and christ, age of faith, renaissance, age of reason begins, age of louis xiv. Now those shelves are ranged against a wall of my bedroom bookshelf creep. What are yalls thoughts on will durants a story of. Buy the story of civilization by durant, will isbn. A book written in the 20th century should have said you and do, etc. The story of civilization, with its tenth volume, rousseau and revolution. Free download or read online the story of civilization pdf epub book. Upon some internet search i discovered that the durants planned a twelfth volume tentatively entitled the age of darwin. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the age of voltaire. What are the best history books to read after will durant. Ive read the first two volumes and i liked them quite a bit, actually.
I just wish i had discovered the story of civilization years ago, and that i could remember more of what i have read. The story of civilization 11 volume set, will durant the story of civilization, by husband and wife will and ariel durant, is an elevenvolume set. All the while, the durants labors on the story of civilization continued. Seeing as this work was first written in the 30s is it not guilty of whig history bias in the same vein as churchills english speaking peoples. The story of civilization 11 volume set by will durant goodreads.
As well, david mccullough, ron chernow, and robert a. I havent been able to read through another book except for a succeeding volume of the story of civilization for the past two years. Having completed the 10 th volume of the story of civilization with the age of napoleon yet to come, will and ariel durant took time to reflect in the lessons of history. The durants had one daughter, ethel, and adopted a son, louis. The durants deserve 5 stars for their lives hard work, dedication and scholarship. The second world was born when thoughts became possible and consciousness emerged. Im not a historian so i cant speak to the academic quality of durants writing. Lastly, with the exception of the story of philosophy, durants books have been out of print for the last several years, including the entire story of civilization. That is to say theres a foregone conclusion which then has evidence to support it rather than evidence to form a conclusion. The renaissance the story of civilization v by durant will. The story of civilization will durant, ariel durant. Finding the book at the library, i was surprised to see that it was but one volume in a massive series called the story of civilizationeleven substantial volumes spanning two feet of shelving. And most of all, i wish i could have met the durants to thank them for this gift to historians and history lovers. In 1977, the durants were presented with the presidential medal of freedom.
The series of story of civilization is worthy to collect. Caro are independent scholars who write excellent biographies and about historical figures. The durants lucidly and eloquently summarize the philosophy, life and influence that rousseau had on the 18th century and, indeed, continues to have to this very day. The story of civilization by will and ariel durant is an elevenvolume set of books. The main characters of this history, non fiction story are. The complete story of civilization by will durant represents the most. A champion of human rights issues, such as the brotherhood of man and social reform, long before such issues.
In the 100 yearsorso since he began researching and writing this book many. The story of civilization, by husband and wife will and ariel durant, is an 11volume set of books covering western history for the general reader. To support themselves, he began lecturing in a presbyterian church for five and tendollar fees. Around the towering and perplexing personality of rousseau who set spinning the whirlpool of ideology, both left and right, the authors recreate in vivid narrative style the growth of eighteenth century intellectual, moral and political dissent, the summit and decline of autocratic rule, religious.
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