Rethinking World History

Is the history of the modern world the history of Europe writ large? Or is it possible to situate the history of modernity as a world historical process apart from its origins in Western Europe? In Part One of this posthumous collection of essays, Marshall G.S. Hodgson, a former professor of history at the University of Chicago, challenges adherents of both Eurocentrism and multiculturalism to rethink the place of Europe in world history. He argues that the line that connects Ancient Greeks to the Renaissance to modern times is an optical illusion, and that a global and Asia-centered history can better locate the European experience in the shared histories of humanity. In Part Two of the work Hodgson shifts the focus and in a parallel move seeks to locate the history of Islamic civilization in a world historical framework. Finally, in Part Three he argues that in the end there is but one history--global history--and that all partial or privileged accounts must necessarily be resituated in a world historical context. The book also includes an introduction by the editor, Edmund Burke III, contextualizing Hodgson's work in world history and Islamic history.
Review
"The pieces collected here show perceptive and rigorously developed insights into the problems of writing world history." Edwin J. Van Kley, Journal of Asian Studies
"Although several decades have elapsed since they were written, these writings offer immense contemporary value for both general historians and scholars of Islam. Besides providing a compendium of the principal thought of an eminent historian and Islamicist, Rethinking World History broadens the range of scholarly vision, presents a stimulating alternative to the frequent insularism of academic specialization and makes an important contribution to the overall understanding of human history." Brian Johnson, Middle East Studies Association Bulletin
"...useful for anyone interested in the discipline of world history." J.A. Progler, Crescent
"As today's world historians struggle with conceptual designs for courses and textbooks, they should pay attention to the lessons Hodgson taught....One delights in his piercing insights, his acerbic wit, and the amazing range of his thought...." Rose E. Dunn, Journal of World History