World Histories From Below : Disruption and Dissent, 1750 to the Present
Author(s):
An emphasis on global structures and forces tends to privilege elites and their accomplishments, especially in the grand narratives of student textbooks. This book is an antidote to such studies and places 'ordinary' people and subordinated subjects at the heart of its analysis, arguing that disruption and dissent are overlooked agents of historical change. The contributors range from leaders in the field to rising stars, and cover themes including:
- religious conversions
- political revolutions
- labor struggles
- body politics.
Each chapter takes a global view of the topic at hand, creating an accessible study of its subject from 1750 to the present day. World Histories From Below has the potential to refocus our entire approach to teaching world history.
Review(s):
“Most of the chapters in this fine collection would work very well in the undergraduate classroom … Each chapter chooses a small group of examples or moments to focus on, with brief mention of others, so students won't get buried in a mass of names and dates. The book as a whole could be assigned in thematic upper-level or graduate courses, both for its content and for the examples that the chapters provide about how to write comparative and world/global history on a specific topic in a research-paper length format. Because many of its examples are not ones often discussed, more advanced scholars of world history would gain by reading the book as well.” - World History Connected
ISBN: 9781472587640