William McNeill

William Hardy McNeill

A distinguished historian probes the critical impact of infectious diseases on the development of world civilizations

Plagues and Peoples

John Robert McNeill

William McNeil

A study on human patterns, interactions, and conflict from the earliest periods in history considers such topics as the evolution of religion, the western world's dominance in the world market, and the creation of ancient agriculture. 20,000 first printing.

A Bird's-eye View of World History

The Human Web

Rise of the West

It provides extensive coverage of the modern era and features numerous illustrations, maps, and tables. This new edition includes a thoroughly updated bibliographic essay and a new discussion of the most significant events in world history and civilization since 1976. Concise writing and comprehensive coverage make this an ideal text for a one-semester survey course in world history.

A World History

A History of the Human Community

The Rise of the West

J. R. McNeill

A Bird's-Eye View of World History

Human Web

Studies the history of the world, with particular attention to the civilizations of the Middle East, India, China, and Europe and extensive treatment of the modern era.

World history and human ecological development are viewed in relation to the concept of parasitism, looking at the organisms that compete with man for food as well as the human groups who seize or demand power and services from other groups

An Ecological and Historical View

The Human Condition

A leading American historian examines the character of the frontiers of European expansion throughout the modern age, questioning a notion of frontier freedom popular since Turner. William McNeill argues that social hierarchy characterized the frontier more often than pioneer equality. As Europeans traveled to various lands, bringing new diseases to vulnerable natives, formerly isolated populations died in great numbers, creating an "open" frontier where labor was scarce. European efforts to develop frontier areas involved either a radical leveling of the hierarchies common in Europe itself or, alternatively, their sharp reinforcement by resort to slavery, serfdom, peonage, and indentured labor. Juxtaposing national and transnational experiences and illuminating the complex interchange of peoples (and illnesses) in the modern era, Professor McNeill brings the history of the United States into perspective as an example of a process that encircled the globe. His book clarifies both the experience of the global frontier and the processes that now mark the end of hundreds of year of expansion of the European center. William H. McNeill is Robert A. Millikan Distinguished Service Professor of History at the University of Chicago. His numerous books include The Rise of the West (Chicago); Plagues and Peoples (Doubleday); and The Human Condition (Princeton). Originally published in 1983. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Freedom and Hierarchy in Modern Times

The Great Frontier

William H. McNeill is known for his ability to portray the grand sweep of history. Now two of his popular books and an essay previously unavailable in book form are brought together in this new paperback edition. In The Human Condition McNeill provides a provocative interpretation of history as a competition of parasites, both biological and human. In The Great Frontier he questions the notion of "frontier freedom" through an examination of European expansion. The concluding essay speculates on the role of catastrophe in our lives. About The Human Condition: "A remarkable tour de force . . . . An elegant, intelligent and scholarly essay."--J. H. Hexter, The New York Times Book Review "A brilliant new interpretation of world history."--David Graber, The Los Angeles Times Book Review About The Great Frontier: There is virtually no one in the profession who can match McNeill as a synthesizer--or, for that matter, as an interdisciplinary historian. . . . There is more insight in this volume than in others of double or triple the length."--David Courtwright, Journal of Interdisciplinary History

Conquerors, Catastrophes, and Community

The Global Condition

Marilyn Robinson Waldman

The Islamic World is a collection of important and representative documents from all periods of Islamic history. From the formative years in Arabia to the confrontations with and responses to modernity, these translations indicate the continuity and development of the youngest of the world's greatest civilizations. Included are historical, theological, philosophical, and political writings, as well as poetry and narratives, from Muslim writers in the Arab lands, Turkey, Persia, and other parts of the Islamic world.

The Islâmic World

Greece, a Permanent Crisis?

William H. McNeill is known for his ability to portray the grand sweep of history. The Global Condition is a classic work for understanding the grand sweep of world history in brief compass. Now with a new foreword by J. R. McNeill, this book brings together two of William Hardy McNeill's popular short books and an essay. The Human Condition provides a provocative interpretation of history as a competition of parasites, both biological and human; The Great Frontier questions the notion of "frontier freedom" through an examination of European expansion; the concluding essay speculates on the role of catastrophe in our lives.

Global in scope, William McNeill's widely acclaimed one-volume history emphasizes the four Old World civilizations of the Middle East, India, China, and Europe, paying particular attention to their interaction across time as well as the impact on historical scholarship in light of the mostrecent archaeological discoveries. The engaging and informative narrative touches on all aspects of civilization, including geography, communication, and technological and artistic developments, and provides extensive coverage of the modern era. This new edition includes a thoroughly updatedbibliographic essay and a new discussion of the most significant events in world history and civilization since 1976.

William Hardy McNeill

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