Understanding Ancient Thought

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Ancient, History
Cover of the book Understanding Ancient Thought by Thomas Yaeger, Thomas Yaeger
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Thomas Yaeger ISBN: 9781370378012
Publisher: Thomas Yaeger Publication: August 20, 2017
Imprint: Smashwords Edition Language: English
Author: Thomas Yaeger
ISBN: 9781370378012
Publisher: Thomas Yaeger
Publication: August 20, 2017
Imprint: Smashwords Edition
Language: English

There are many puzzling things about the ancient world, since those who peopled that world lived and thought within quite different models of reality. Why did they practice the sacrifice of animals? Why did they think they could understand the future by examining the entrails and the liver of a ram? What was the logic beneath the practice of magic? Other questions are equally problematic to answer, such as their understanding of religion, which, on close examination, does not closely resemble our own understanding of what religion is, and why did they think that the physical reality we experience is a species of illusion?

After the passage of more than two and a half millennia, it is hard for us to make sense of the evidence which has survived. Sometimes the nature of the evidence is problematic, and sometimes our approach to that evidence is the problem: we carry intellectual baggage which often makes it very difficult to know and understand what we are looking at.

Much of the teaching of ancient history provides analysis which privileges our modern point of view. So we read the past largely in terms of power, propaganda and prestige, because those are important factors in modern history. In the ancient world, matters were not so simple, and were complicated by what people believed about the nature of their reality.

By contrast, this collection of essays attempts, as far as possible, to understand the ancient world within its original context, and to highlight where modern thought and the modern mind introduce obstacles to what can be understood.

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

There are many puzzling things about the ancient world, since those who peopled that world lived and thought within quite different models of reality. Why did they practice the sacrifice of animals? Why did they think they could understand the future by examining the entrails and the liver of a ram? What was the logic beneath the practice of magic? Other questions are equally problematic to answer, such as their understanding of religion, which, on close examination, does not closely resemble our own understanding of what religion is, and why did they think that the physical reality we experience is a species of illusion?

After the passage of more than two and a half millennia, it is hard for us to make sense of the evidence which has survived. Sometimes the nature of the evidence is problematic, and sometimes our approach to that evidence is the problem: we carry intellectual baggage which often makes it very difficult to know and understand what we are looking at.

Much of the teaching of ancient history provides analysis which privileges our modern point of view. So we read the past largely in terms of power, propaganda and prestige, because those are important factors in modern history. In the ancient world, matters were not so simple, and were complicated by what people believed about the nature of their reality.

By contrast, this collection of essays attempts, as far as possible, to understand the ancient world within its original context, and to highlight where modern thought and the modern mind introduce obstacles to what can be understood.

More books from History

Cover of the book The British Empire: Teach Yourself by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Constitutional Preferences and Parliamentary Reform by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book The Price of Fire by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Stalin - The Enduring Legacy by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Digital Imaging by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Stolen Childhoods by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Eleanor's Story by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book The Isles of Scilly by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Anthologie des poetes du quercy by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book All the Presidents' Gardens by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Puritanism & Revolution by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Locke, sa vie et ses œuvres by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Mr. Churchill's Profession by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book Beyond Shock and Awe by Thomas Yaeger
Cover of the book A History of Math - Journey from the Ancient Babylonians and Greeks to Modern Applied Mathematics by Thomas Yaeger
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