The Renaissance, the Reformation, and the Rise of Nations

By: Andrew C. Fix, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Andrew C. Fix

Between 1348 and 1715, western Europe was fraught with turmoil, beset by the Black Plague, numerous and bitter religious wars, and frequent political revolutions and upheavals.

Yet the Europe that emerged from this was vastly different from the Europe that entered it. By the start of the 18th century, Europe had been revitalized and reborn in a radical break with the past that would have untold ramifications for human civilization.

This comprehensive series of 48 lectures by an award-winning teacher and scholar sheds new light on this critical period by exploring the political, social, cultural, and economic revolutions that transformed Europe between the arrival of the Black Death in the 14th century to the onset of the Enlightenment in the 18th century.

It explains

• how these startling changes came about;
• the social, economic, and political factors that helped steer Europe away from the Middle Ages and into the modern world;
• the kinds of patterns we can see during this time; and
• how these centuries were critical to the entire narrative of history and have contributed to the Western world we know today.

Professor Fix covers a remarkable breadth of subjects relating to European history from 1348 to 1715. While religion, politics, wars, and economics dominate this period, he also pays close attention to art, exploration, science, and technology.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2005 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2005 The Great Courses

Unbalanced expertise

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I'm at least somewhat familiar with most areas of history that this course covers, and unfortunately didn't learn much of anything new listening to Prof. Fix except for a few bits here and there related to the Reformation. Overall not worth the many hours of listening. There were a few points that were just factually incorrect and some odd pronunciation.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Prof Fix's area of expertise lies with the Netherlands and its religious history, and you can hear him perk up and really sink his teeth into it in those sections. Everything else is rather bland and just a surface level summary of events for the most part without any real analysis or explanation. If you're looking to learn about the Renaissance, the scientific revolution, the rise of Absolutism, or the English Civil War, there are better lecture courses and books out there. I did enjoy his lectures focused on the Reformation in the German states and the Low Countries, but overall his ability to lecture on all the areas covered by the title of this course was lacking.

Would you be willing to try another one of Professor Andrew C. Fix’s performances?

Only if the course was limited to his area of expertise.

Great Addition to the Knowledge Bank

Rarely does a course cover so much ground and include the detail necessary to stitch together such complex set of eras and ideas. I think I’ll be revisiting this material for years.
Dr. Fix was a true scholar and a wonderful presenter of his research and knowledge. Will be greatly missed.

A Good and Broad Summary

I was a wary of the length of this course, as I felt there might be a lot of filler content, but it stayed on focus for the most part. It covered geopolitical, economic, religious and scientific issues very well and created very good links between them.

As a beginner on this section of this bit of history, it was definitely worth it for me!

Fix Explains It

Historical complexities fall helplessly before Fix. He knows most audiences need clear explanations. Five Stars.

A great counterweight to today's stupidity

History in it's proper context is always relative to current times and is the best antidote to the stupidity in which I routinely see happening around especially during the political season.

This lecture starts the Renaissance with Florence and even will tell you practically the day that the Renaissance started. In 1382, Florence was in the process of losing a war with one of their weaker neighbors and the General leading the assault against Florence died and thereby saved Florence from defeat.

The city fathers decided to look at what had gone wrong and one of the things is they realized that their scholasticism was only geared towards producing Lawyers, Doctors and Theologians and not critical thinkers able to generalize from the particular to the universal (science and philosophy previously was not inductive, but deductive, from the universal to the particular).

The city fathers made a concerted effort to teach the people how to think critically and to conceptualize beyond the old standards. By rejecting the old ways of scholasticism, they led to providing a modern perspective which will ultimately lead to the Enlightenment. The Florentine city fathers would have realized how nothing could be more stupid than to have a politician be cheered when he says that "a welder is worth more than a philosopher" (this is an actual example from this current political season, and highlights the stupidity currently going on). That statement is wrong for multiple reasons. A person's worth doesn't come from what he does for a living, welders make good philosophers, and teaching one how to think critically is always a good thing to do. In the case of Florence it's going to ultimately lead to the creation of an Isaac Newton.

I don't want to imply that the reformation and nation building parts of this lecture are not relevant to today's times for they are and were just as entertaining as the Renaissance parts were. I just wish people who cheered such stupid statements as the one cited above would read (or listen) to history and science books and lectures and start to think beyond what they see on their TVs and blogs and get themselves out of the scholastic mindset and start to learn to think critically.

The lecturer does devote two hours to the development of science up to Isaac Newton and explains the Aristotelian Ptolemaic system better than most books I've read on the development of science. He'll end the lecture at the early Enlightenment, and he covers all the steps that are necessary for the creation of an Isaac Newton and a Pierre Bayle (one of my all time favorite people and I'm glad this lecture gives him his proper place within the Enlightenment, if only briefly).

Great Topics but Wordy Delivery

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I'd suggest the course be condensed. Professor Fix rambled at times and seemed to search for narrative to fill the time allotted for each chapter. Also, he isn't clear on a lot of points. He interprets feelings without stating sources. I couldn't tell if it was his own conjecture or based on some research.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I would have preferred a more succinct and clear presentation.

Amazing

Very educational and fascinating! Definitely a great listen! Download today. One of the best history lessons I've listened to.

Informative Overview of the Periods

I thought the lecture series was a great overview of the Renaissance and reformation. the professor's laid back approach is easy to listen to. he brings up many important facts just in the course of telling a story. but takes nothing away from the historical importance of those facts. for me it was a great view of a period of time that's very complex, very formative, and hugely influential on Western civilization.

Thorough and revelatory

Very informative and brilliantly delivered. A fascinating detailed discussion of the Renaissance in all its glory.

very good

Informative and easy to read, indeed. Little in-depth analysis, but with the sheer amount of data, no wonder. I felt it failed to tie a few knots, but overall a good read.