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The Black Death: The World's Most Devastating Plague
- Narrated by: Dorsey Armstrong
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
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Publisher's summary
Many of us know the Black Death as a catastrophic event of the medieval world. But the Black Death was arguably the most significant event in Western history, profoundly affecting every aspect of human life, from the economic and social to the political, religious, and cultural. In its wake the plague left a world that was utterly changed, forever altering the traditional structure of European societies and forcing a rethinking of every single system of Western civilization: food production and trade, the church, political institutions, law, art, and more. In large measure, by the profundity of the changes it brought, the Black Death produced the modern world we live in today.
While the story of the Black Death is one of destruction and loss, its breathtaking scope and effects make it one of the most compelling and deeply intriguing episodes in human history. Understanding the remarkable unfolding of the plague and its aftermath provides a highly revealing window not only on the medieval world but also on the forces that brought about the Renaissance, the Protestant Reformation, and modernity itself.
Speaking to the full magnitude of this world-changing historical moment, The Black Death: The World's Most Devastating Plague, taught by celebrated medievalist Dorsey Armstrong of Purdue University, takes you on an unforgettable excursion into the time period of the plague, its full human repercussions, and its transformative effects on European civilization. In 24 richly absorbing lectures, you'll follow the path of the epidemic in its complete trajectory across medieval Europe. Majestic in scope and remarkable in detail, this course goes to the heart of one of Western history's most catalytic and galvanizing moments, the effects of which gave us the modern world.
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- By Light Worker on 04-21-18
By: M. Doreal
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Napoleon's Hemorrhoids…And Other Small Events That Changed History
- By: Phil Mason
- Narrated by: LJ Ganser
- Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Hilarious, fascinating, and a roller coaster of dizzying, historical what-ifs, Napoleon's Hemorrhoids is a potpourri for serious historians and casual history buffs. In one of Phil Mason's many revelations, you'll learn that Communist jets were two minutes away from opening fire on American planes during the Cuban missile crisis, when they had to turn back as they were running out of fuel. You'll discover that before the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon's painful hemorrhoids prevented him from mounting his horse to survey the battlefield.
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They just throw the facts too fast
- By Concerned_llama on 12-11-20
By: Phil Mason
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The Pagan World
- Ancient Religions Before Christianity
- By: Hans-Friedrich Mueller, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Hans-Friedrich Mueller
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Original Recording
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In The Pagan World: Ancient Religions Before Christianity, you will meet the fascinating, ancient polytheistic peoples of the Mediterranean and beyond, their many gods and goddesses, and their public and private worship practices, as you come to appreciate the foundational role religion played in their lives. Professor Hans-Friedrich Mueller, of Union College in Schenectady, New York, makes this ancient world come alive in 24 lectures with captivating stories of intrigue, artifacts, illustrations, and detailed descriptions from primary sources of intriguing personalities.
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The Pagan World
- By arnold e andersen md Dr Andersen on 03-28-20
By: Hans-Friedrich Mueller, and others
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The Rise of Rome
- By: The Great Courses, Gregory S. Aldrete
- Narrated by: Gregory S. Aldrete
- Length: 12 hrs and 16 mins
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The Roman Republic is one of the most breathtaking civilizations in world history. Between roughly 500 BCE to the turn of the millennium, a modest city-state developed an innovative system of government and expanded into far-flung territories across Europe, Northern Africa, and the Middle East. This powerful civilization inspired America's founding fathers, gifted us a blueprint for amazing engineering innovations, left a vital trove of myths, and has inspired the human imagination for 2,000 years.
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Very good, but doesn't stand out
- By Christopher on 02-08-18
By: The Great Courses, and others
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World War 2 in the Pacific Collection: Across Wake Island, Bataan, Guadalcanal, Corregidor, and Iwo Jima
- Helmet for My Pillow: From Parris Island to the Pacific, The Saga of Pappy Gunn, On Valor's Side, The Coastwatchers, They Call it Pacific, Joe Foss Flying Marine, South from Corregidor, The Story of Wake Island, & Mission Beyond Darkness
- By: Robert Lackie, General George C. Kenney, T. Grady Gallant, and others
- Narrated by: Museum Audiobooks Cast
- Length: 66 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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This is a nine-book bundle on the Pacific War, the theatre of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean and Oceania. The Pacific War saw the Allies pitted against Japan, aided by Thailand and its Axis allies, Germany and Italy. Fighting included some of the largest naval battles in history, and the war culminated in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
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Good collection, great bargain well worth a credit
- By R. Denton on 08-13-21
By: Robert Lackie, and others
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The 10 enlightening (and often humorous) lectures of Medieval Myths and Mysteries will show you how far from the “dark” times of legend these centuries were. Uncover the facts about the Knights Templar. Reveal the truth behind the tales of legendary creatures like the Questing Beast and the unicorn. Trace the events of the Black Death and the ways it altered the world in its wake, and much more. With Professor Armstrong, you will dig deep into the ways that later generations reshaped the narrative of the medieval years and perpetuated the myths.
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Charles Darwin's theory of organic evolution-the idea that life on earth is the product of purely natural causes, not the hand of God-set off shock waves that continue to reverberate through Western society, and especially the United States. What makes evolution such a profoundly provocative concept, so convincing to most scientists, yet so socially and politically divisive? These 12 eye-opening lectures are an examination of the varied elements that so often make this science the object of strong sentiments and heated debate.
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Little mistakes here and there
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The Great Mortality
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- Unabridged
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The plague that devastated Asia and Europe in the 14th century has been of never-ending interest to both scholars and the general public. Many books on the plague rely on statistics to tell the story. In The Great Mortality, author John Kelly lends an air of immediacy and intimacy to his telling of the journey of the plague as it traveled from the steppes of Russia, across Europe, and into England, killing 75 million people—one third of the known population—before it vanished.
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Endless Speculation and Contradiction
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What listeners say about The Black Death: The World's Most Devastating Plague
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Dillion
- 08-06-18
Great “great course”
I’m a mailman for the USPS and honestly listening to music gets old real fast. I’ve listened to over 70 audiobook over the last year many of them being Great Courses. This particular Great Course has me hooked from the beginning. The professor is very knowledgeable and you really get the sense she loves what she is lecturing about. I learned a lot and i hope other people who like to learn new things choose this one.
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72 people found this helpful
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- Henry
- 07-25-16
Extremely Interesting
I liked how the spread of the plague and its social, economic and political effects were described. Worth the listen in every way.
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7 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 09-24-20
highly Recommend !
Loved it, Content and narrator . This covered every aspect of society, differences b/t locations and parts of Europe. Makes one evaluate through what lens they are looking at the current pandemic.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 07-30-17
Deadly Subject, Lively Lecturer
In my opinion, the best History GC courses are those focused on a narrow subjects. Compared to bigger, more sweeping series, shorter series like this can really dig into details and context. And this course delivers the meaty detail, not just an appetite-wetting summary. For example, I thoroughly enjoyed of the six lectures dedicated to the plague's effect on specific cities and regions, such as Florence and Avignon .
Also, for as dark a subject as the Black Death, the Great Courses couldn't have picked a more delightful lecturer. Dr. Armstrong is straight-up charming. She ranks among the top 5 GC lecturers I've encountered without a doubt.
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- Calier Reux
- 07-26-18
Riveting!
I have listened to this series twice now. It never fails to fill me with morbid fascination.
The course follows the plague as it spread through Europe, examining the cultures and societal structures of each area and how those constructs affected the rebuilding of society.
I really enjoy Professor Armstrong's narration and her ability to make the people and communities devastated by plague relatable.
Highly recommended.
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- Victoria A. McCargar
- 08-18-16
Magnificent
Lots of new (to me and my morbid fascination with this topic) and recent scholarly material, brilliantly and engaging delivered. Glorioski, I wish I could lecture like that.
Unlike a lot of academics, this professor doesn't introduce a postmodernist political interpretation at every turn. Yersinia Pestis didn't cause an outbreak of proto-Marxism (cf. Norman Cantor).
One can tell that she simply enjoys the topic and her fascination inspires the listener's own.
I listened to this in L.A.'s legendary traffic and didn't notice the automotive glacier in which I was moored. So much to think about. Lecture 24 gave me the holy terrors.
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- S. Yates
- 12-13-16
Illuminating course
Any additional comments?
3.5 stars. Well presented set of lectures exploring the Black Death from a number of perspectives. Professor Armstrong ranges from epidemiology, theories on what the black death was (as there is some debate over whether it was purely bubonic plague, septicemic plague, and pneumonic plague, or if other diseases were also at play), the pre- and post-plague structure of society, the impact on the arts, and how the medieval world was transformed. Professor Armstrong is engaging and entertaining and the course is very informative.
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- Kindle Customer
- 01-15-19
good, but a bit repetitive in places
I would have liked a bit more new detail in each lecture and less rehashing of previous lecture topics. The structure felt geared toward relatively long gaps between listening periods, as in a traditional college course, rather than the more continuous pace common when listening to audiobooks or CDs. That said, I enjoyed this course a lot.
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- Joseph
- 02-06-17
Really good
I actually thought I was sick after hearing this book the story is top notch.
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- lserratos
- 11-21-17
Infectiously Interesting!
Ok, plague puns aside this is an amazing course!
Not only is the topic interesting, but it is tackled at from so many angles that by the end of it you really feel like an expert on plague-related issues, able to terrorize relatives at family dinners.
The narrator, Prof. Armstrong is just the very best! Not only is her voice perfect to hear and her credentials and expertise impeccable, but she delivers the lecture with both a historian's passion and a performer's sense of humor which I have not found yet in other Great Courses' narrators.
I bought this course after listening to the one on The Medieval World, where she devoted one lecture to the plague, but mentioned that it is such an interesting topic that it could fill a whole course on its own. Boy, was she right! From the origins of the plague to the epidemiology and progression of the infection throughout Europe; from the economic consequences in a medieval manor to the possible extraterrestrial origins of the disease; this course has it all!
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