Exceptionally reader-friendly, extensively illustrated, and engagingly thought-provoking, this one-volume historical survey of the humanities is accessible — and inviting — to readers with little background in the arts and humanities. Carefully balanced among the major arts, philosophy, and religion and finely focused on selected principal events, styles, movements, and figures, it brings the past to life by including authentic documents from daily life, comparative global perspectives, and examples from literature, philosophy, music — including the contributions of women and minority artists. A wealth of critical thinking, writing, and discussion activities helps readers make aesthetic and philosophical judgments, synthesize and compare topics, and discover the humanities' rich connections to their own lives. The author addresses the humanities within Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, The Judeo-Christian spirit, the early Middle Ages, the late Middle Ages, the Renaissance spirit in Italy, the Northern and late Renaissance, the spirit of Baroque, the spirit of enlightenment, revolution and romanticism, the Industrial Age, the spirit of Modernism and the contemporary spirit. For those seeking a historical survey of the humanities.
I read this book for Humanities class, and so that already gives it a bad start. It was jam-packed with information. It was tedious to read through it all, interesting as it was. If you like this kinda stuff it's a good read, but know that it's not 100% accurate.
It was a very easy to understand even though at times I found myself looking up some of the words he used to describe something but other than that it's easy and kind of fun to read. The author summarized past human spirit until present human spirit very clearly.