Must We Divide History Into Periods?

Nonfiction, History, Renaissance, European General
Cover of the book Must We Divide History Into Periods? by Jacques Le Goff, Columbia University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jacques Le Goff ISBN: 9780231540407
Publisher: Columbia University Press Publication: September 8, 2015
Imprint: Columbia University Press Language: English
Author: Jacques Le Goff
ISBN: 9780231540407
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Publication: September 8, 2015
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Language: English

We have long thought of the Renaissance as a luminous era that marked a decisive break with the past, but the idea of the Renaissance as a distinct period arose only during the nineteenth century. Though the view of the Middle Ages as a dark age of unreason has softened somewhat, we still locate the advent of modern rationality in the Italian thought and culture of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

Jacques Le Goff pleads for a strikingly different view. In this, his last book, he argues persuasively that many of the innovations we associate with the Renaissance have medieval roots, and that many of the most deplorable aspects of medieval society continued to flourish during the Renaissance. We should instead view Western civilization as undergoing several "renaissances" following the fall of Rome, over the course of a long Middle Ages that lasted until the mid-eighteenth century.

While it is indeed necessary to divide history into periods, Le Goff maintains, the meaningful continuities of human development only become clear when historians adopt a long perspective. Genuine revolutions—the shifts that signal the end of one period and the beginning of the next—are much rarer than we think.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

We have long thought of the Renaissance as a luminous era that marked a decisive break with the past, but the idea of the Renaissance as a distinct period arose only during the nineteenth century. Though the view of the Middle Ages as a dark age of unreason has softened somewhat, we still locate the advent of modern rationality in the Italian thought and culture of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries.

Jacques Le Goff pleads for a strikingly different view. In this, his last book, he argues persuasively that many of the innovations we associate with the Renaissance have medieval roots, and that many of the most deplorable aspects of medieval society continued to flourish during the Renaissance. We should instead view Western civilization as undergoing several "renaissances" following the fall of Rome, over the course of a long Middle Ages that lasted until the mid-eighteenth century.

While it is indeed necessary to divide history into periods, Le Goff maintains, the meaningful continuities of human development only become clear when historians adopt a long perspective. Genuine revolutions—the shifts that signal the end of one period and the beginning of the next—are much rarer than we think.

More books from Columbia University Press

Cover of the book Zoographies by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book The Philosopher's Plant by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Hollywood's Dirtiest Secret by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Brains, Buddhas, and Believing by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Monuments, Objects, Histories by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Think in Public by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book A World Safe for Capitalism by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book I Love Dollars and Other Stories of China by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Fu Ping by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Across the Lines of Conflict by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Islam by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Socialism Unbound by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book What to Do When College Is Not the Best Time of Your Life by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Holy Wars and Holy Alliance by Jacques Le Goff
Cover of the book Motion(less) Pictures by Jacques Le Goff
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy