The World Was Never the Same: Events That Changed History

By: J. Rufus Fears, The Great Courses

Narrated by: J. Rufus Fears

History is made and defined by landmark events - moments that irrevocably changed the course of human civilization. They have given us

• spiritual and political ideas;
• catastrophic battles and wars;
• scientific and technological advances;
• world leaders both influential and monstrous; and
• cultural works of unparalleled beauty.

Now a series of 36 captivating lectures explores some of the most important and definitive events in the history of the world - events after which our world would never be the same.

Taught by a remarkably gifted teacher with more than 25 teaching awards to his credit, these lectures form an intriguing and engaging tour of thousands of years of human history, from the creation of the Code of Hammurabi to the Battle of Lexington to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech and beyond. It's a chance for you to gain new insights about world history from a truly riveting historian.

Using his expert knowledge and impressive ability to draw out invaluable lessons from the past, Professor Fears has chosen the events he discusses based on three criteria: how the event in itself fundamentally changed history, how the aftermath of the event changed history, and how the event and its impact still resonate with us today.

The result is a comprehensive and authoritative selection of subjects, each of which played a crucial role in transforming human civilization. Whether the event is an obvious or not-so-obvious choice, Professor Fears takes great care to tie each to the 21st century, pointing out just how influential these and other moments were in shaping who we are and how we live.

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

©2010 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2010 The Great Courses

Not for well-read history buff

Would you try another book from The Great Courses and/or Professor J. Rufus Fears?

This would not be a bad series for a person who thinks they might like history and the subject of events that changed history, but if you are a fairly well-read history buff, you will already know most of the events and details provided.

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

Perhaps found less known events that made a difference or else, provided unknown details or connections in the ones provided.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

About average for a lecturer. I don't expect class lecturers to be greatly dynamic. It is nice if they are, but as long as I can understand them and they provide good information, I don't care.

J. Rufus Fears, a Genius in our time.

You can tell from all of Professor Fear’s accolades right at the beginning of this audiobooks that he is a genius and a great professor. That becomes evident the second his first lecture begins.

There’s a reason that Professor Fears is one of the most loved professors hired by the Teaching Company. 10/10

Very interesting

This is a very poignant and relevant lecture series. The professor is clearly knowlegeable and understandable. The context of each event is explained in relation to the history of humanity. I highly recommend this course.

Excellent Read

For those that are students of history this book is an excellent and enjoyable read.

Short form world history done pretty well

The selection of items was interesting and much energy in the presentation. It is good. I have it good instead of excellent because of the particular style of the presenter which is good but to my taste not excellent. Still much one can learn here.

Rufus J Fears is a Force

Any one of the great courses that is taught by Rufus J Fears is worth listening too. He is one of the most talented instructors I have ever listen to. He passed away a few years ago, so these classes archive the work of a genius.

He makes history fun to read (listen to)

This is the second of the Great Courses I have read which is done by Professor Fears, and I have thoroughly enjoyed both of them. He has a very lively and at times humorous way of telling his stories which is very easy to listen to. Also, he goes into detail enough about background and culture so that we can really understand why these stories matter to us today.

He covers a really large variety of topics, too. There are political events like Caesar crossing the Rubicon or the Athenians driving off the Persians or the ascension to power of Adolf Hitler. There are religious events like the life of Buddha or Jesus. There are scientific or medical events like the lives of Hippocrates, Pasteur or Darwin. There were a few events I had never heard of, but there were many more events I had heard of but didn't know much about. He brought these events into sharp focus and helped me understand that my life today would be very different than what it is if this or that event had not taken place.

Many of the events in the early part of the course were religious in nature--because, I suppose, religion was such an integral part of the lives of ancient peoples. I am not a believer in any religion, but I can see that these events were still very important in shaping our world into what it is today, so they needed to be included in this course.

Bottom line: I really enjoyed this, and I recommend it to you.

Excellent and insightful

What made the experience of listening to The World Was Never the Same: Events That Changed History the most enjoyable?

The professor was engaging, dynamic and made interesting points. He described the downline implications well and plausibly as well as situating the occurrences among the contemporary history.

What other book might you compare The World Was Never the Same: Events That Changed History to and why?

What if? just because it describes pivotal moments in history that had far reaching impact.

Have you listened to any of Professor J. Rufus Fears’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, but I would listen to him in a heartbeat.

Great job!

I love the way this guy presents his material. Makes it a lot easier to listen to, and learn from. I would recommend his work to anyone.

Interesting, although a bit US-centric at the end

This was an interesting course, although the speaker spoke at such a slow pace that I kept speeding it up at 1.5 times the original speed. The speaker was very clear in his love for the US, which I respect, but it was a bit too much on the nose for my taste. Some of the events seem to be chosen also from a US-centric perspective, although he makes good points underlining their importance. I thought it was weird, inappropriate and out of place how often he remarque how beautiful Kennedy's (?) wife was.
Overall this was an interesting course, albeit I didn't love it.