Past Mistakes: How We Misinterpret History and Why It Matters, David Mountain

-About this book

This book is about about how we mistake and misinterpret the past, and why that matters to us in the present. Like how a mistake about the colour of ancient sculptures can inadvertently fuel white nationalism, or, as we’ll discover, how a travelling circus convinced Americans that their country was won with guns, or how an ancient Roman smear campaign still informs our conception of who is and isn’t ‘civilised’. 

-Contents

Introduction: Blue beards and white power
1. The false dawn of civilisation
2. Pythagoras and the cult of personality
3. Barbarians, Vandals and other victims of slander
4. Light in the Dark Ages
5. Columbus didn’t discover America
6. The real housewives of the 18th century
7. How to invent a nation
8. The curse of the crystal skulls
9. How the West wasn’t won
Conclusion: The ever-present past

-caractéristiques

Date de parution :5 novembre 2020

Éditeur : Icon Books Ltd

N.de pages : 400 pages

ISBN-13 : 978-1785786624

Poids: 450 g

Dimensions : 22.3 x 3.5 x 14.6 cm

Langue :  Anglais