Western Experience: Since the 16th Century, Vol. 2

Overview: This survey for the Western Civilization course has attained much prestige and a reputation for excellence over the last six editions. It offers a strong political narrative with balanced coverage of social, cultural/intellectual, economic and women’s history. The scholarship is second to none. THE WESTERN EXPERIENCE provides an interpretive and analytical approach which will appeal to professors who want their students to come away from their courses with not only a grasp of the “facts,” but also having been challenged by interpretations, having analyzed assumptions, and having used their critical thinking skills. The lavish map and illustration program provides visual sources to aid students in learning, and the carefully chosen art program with its long explanatory captions provides a strong art history element to the text. The book presents a chronological survey of the history of the West while weaving the narrative around several recurring themes: social structure, the body politic, organization of production and the impact of technology, evolution of the family and changing gender roles, war, religion and cultural expression. This helps students to understand the continuing thread of development that exists throughout history. In developing the seventh edition, the authors focused on increasing the coverage of women and the family throughout the text in an integrated fashion, increasing the coverage of popular culture, and increasing the number of “historical debate” boxes that proved so popular in the sixth edition. The Medieval chapters (6-11) have been significantly revised by new author Barbara Hanawalt. Also, attention to the flow of the narrative led to breaking down long paragraphs into shorter ones with new explanatory headings, increasing accessibility for students.