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Ideas: A History of Thought and Invention, from Fire to Freud Paperback – Illustrated, September 26, 2006

4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 146 ratings

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Peter Watson's hugely ambitious and stimulating history of ideas from deep antiquity to the present day—from the invention of writing, mathematics, science, and philosophy to the rise of such concepts as the law, sacrifice, democracy, and the soul—offers an illuminated path to a greater understanding of our world and ourselves.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

“This is a grand book...The history of ideas deserves treatment on this scale.” — Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, Evening Standard (London)

“A superior specimen, with numerous interesting factoids...thought-provoking short essays.” — John Derbyshire, New York Sun

“A masterpiece of historical writing.” — John Gray, Professor of European Thought, London School of Economics, New Statesman

“[An] extraordinary new book....This is the history of ‘ideas’ as it has never been presented before.” — Noel Malcolm, Sunday Telegraph (London)

From the Back Cover

Peter Watson's hugely ambitious and stimulating history of ideas from deep antiquity to the present day—from the invention of writing, mathematics, science, and philosophy to the rise of such concepts as the law, sacrifice, democracy, and the soul—offers an illuminated path to a greater understanding of our world and ourselves.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial; Annotated edition (September 26, 2006)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 852 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0060935642
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0060935641
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.4 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 1.35 x 7.37 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 146 ratings

About the author

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Peter Watson
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Peter Watson is the author of War on the Mind, Wisdom and Strength, The Caravaggio Conspiracy, Ideas, and The German Genius. Educated at the universities of Durham, London, and Rome, he has written for the Sunday Times, the Times, the New York Times, the Observer, and the Spectator. He lives in London.

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
146 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They appreciate the intellectual history from prehistoric times through the end of the 20th century. Readers praise the writing style as clear, easy to read, and engaging. The book has a vast scope and depth that customers enjoy. The author is described as brilliant and well-educated.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

22 customers mention "Readability"22 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. They appreciate its scope and scholarship, finding it a worthwhile experience. The author's writing style is conversational, making the book never boring. Overall, readers describe it as an excellent work that provides valuable insights into various topics.

"“Ideas”, by Peter Watson, is a remarkable book, and not one to be approached lightly. At 800+ pages it is encyclopedic in content...." Read more

"...what psyche is; but the author has taken up the challenge and done exceptionally well...." Read more

"...In summary, this is a must book for all those curious about the greatest ideas of humankind...." Read more

"...This finely written (and edited) book was a pleasure from the beginning...." Read more

21 customers mention "Intellectual history"21 positive0 negative

Customers find the book an excellent synthesis of intellectual history from prehistoric times through the end of the 20th century. They find it fascinating and well-presented, with many interesting asides and anecdotes. The range of ideas and topics covered is astounding, as it says the title "From Fire to Freud". The content is rich and satisfying, with insightful summaries and contextualizing.

"...that Watson could have assembled, organized, and presented so much information. In the small bits that I know something about, Watson is spot-on!" Read more

"...at our own contemporary time, but instead, is a referential body of the episodes in human history that allowed successive generations of man to..." Read more

"...4. It's encyclopedic work condensed in a book. 5. Elegantly and clearly written. 6. A wide and I mean wide range of topics. 7...." Read more

"This is an astonishing compilation of the history of ideas, offered in "digestible bites"!..." Read more

17 customers mention "Writing style"16 positive1 negative

Customers find the book's writing style engaging and easy to read. They appreciate the insightful summary and contextualizing, as well as the author's straightforward style that develops ideas. The book is detailed yet never boring, making it easy to relate various concepts at the same time.

"...This book is easy to read, made for any age and lays forth an encouragement that the reader will continue to delve deeper into human history and to..." Read more

"...2. Interesting tidbits throughout and I enjoyed how the author ties things together. 3...." Read more

"...not to take himself too seriously in his presentation, sprinkling lighthearted remarks and observations along the way--further adding to the reading..." Read more

"...on the Romantic movement starts out with some excellent, really insightful summarizing and contextualizing...." Read more

5 customers mention "Depth"5 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's depth and breadth. They find the scope impressive and enjoy reading it.

"...I could barely put the book down and thoroughly enjoyed the book's breadth...." Read more

"This is an extraordinary book, the vast scope never loses focus and it's written in a straight style, developing the author's ideas in a compelling..." Read more

"I have not completed the book yet but what I am reading is impressive in its scale and scope, well written, immense in richness of research..." Read more

"I'm about six chapters into this book. It's pretty big. The chapters are easy to read and well thought out...." Read more

4 customers mention "Author quality"4 positive0 negative

Customers find the author brilliant and well-educated. They say he makes certain topics interesting and is a great thinker.

"...Furthermore, this author, while obviously extremely well educated in all the subjects in the book, chose not to take himself too seriously in his..." Read more

"Very informative, very interesting. Brilliant author." Read more

"Really enjoy this book, the author is wonderful at making certain topics interesting, and including SO MUCH information !" Read more

"...does my son; we are both interested in history, etc... Peter Watson is a great thinker; highly recommended." Read more

4 customers mention "Scholarship"4 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's scholarship. They find the writing style clear and engaging, with an impressive breadth of knowledge. The author's dedication and scholarly work make it worth their time.

"...for authors like Mr. Watson who's incredible dedication and scholarly work make it so worth my time. Positives: 1...." Read more

"...Such scholarship and a clear writing style. Reading and rereading is a most worthwhile experience." Read more

"The book is impressive -- both in scope and scholarship...." Read more

"...Watson writes in an engaging style and the breadth of his scholarship is impressive...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on November 28, 2012
    It is quite impossible for any one person to say with absolute authority exactly what are all the ideas, concepts, innovations and insights that lead the human forward in the advancement of civilization through the activities of harnessing nature,establishing just laws, instituting the best educational curriculum for social progress, and understanding what psyche is; but the author has taken up the challenge and done exceptionally well. This book is not really a story that starts at some beginning of time and then brings the reader up to a conclusion at our own contemporary time, but instead, is a referential body of the episodes in human history that allowed successive generations of man to build the next future upon and from which then brought forth the steady rise of human betterment. Mr. Watson begins with the civilization of Sumer and proceeds to the last pages with the great scientific breakthroughs of modern physics and American law at the beginning of the 20th century. This is history told in a different light and is one worth reading. One can pick any chapter or any paragraph at random if so desired and find themselves enriched. Or, one can read from beginning to end without interruption. When it is customary for historical work to usually highlight the actions of presidents, titans of commerce, military generals and admirals, campaigns of conquests and the corresponding rise and fall of political systems and their empires, Mr. Watson traces a very different path here and the reader is well rewarded. Does he include all the important philosophers and scientists, engineers and artists and men of medicine? No. But that is not really a shortcoming. He does an adroit job of showing how the rise of man's intellect and improvement in living has been a steady progression of brilliant steps which subtly reveals just what a marvel is the human mind, just what an amazing species are we humans, able to look at the world and pluck out of the imaginative well that is the mind some element that when utilized changes the whole of our world, usually for the good. This book is easy to read, made for any age and lays forth an encouragement that the reader will continue to delve deeper into human history and to pay more attention to those who are often forgotten or ignored in the usual quest of national pride to place triumphant heroes on pedestals to be deified by the common person or to be idolized by some future grandiose politician. I cannot possibly think that any one can truly find fault with the scope and perspective and general aim of this book and what it strives to accomplish.
    13 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on December 5, 2024
    This author really knew the audience he was addressing. This finely written (and edited) book was a pleasure from the beginning. I am aware the length of this tome was in the author's mind, but he must have known that his time and space limitations acted as a tease for the reader who wanted to know more. The bibliography and footnotes were excellent, but it sure would have been nice to have read expansions in this author's own style. Furthermore, this author, while obviously extremely well educated in all the subjects in the book, chose not to take himself too seriously in his presentation, sprinkling lighthearted remarks and observations along the way--further adding to the reading pleasure.

    I have gifted copies of this book to several and have recommended it to many more. I thank the author.
  • Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2021
    “Ideas”, by Peter Watson, is a remarkable book, and not one to be approached lightly. At 800+ pages it is encyclopedic in content. Rather than being organized alphabetically, it is organized around 36 broad ideas, each with its own chapter. It is well indexed, with one index devoted to names and places, another to ideas. Even so, the scope is so vast, key names are missing in the index, an example being Copernicus.
    The best way to approach the book is probably by reading a specific chapter of interest. An example might be chapter 23 titled “The Genius of Experiment”, which is about the scientific revolution, and which does indeed give considerable credit to Copernicus. Having said that, chapter 23 is just one of 36 chapters, so its treatment of the scientific revolution is necessarily brief. Much more thorough treatments of the rise of modern science can be found elsewhere, for instance in “A History of Science” by W.C. Dampier first published in 1929.
    A fascinating aspect of Watson’s book is that it highlights the unevenness of the development of ideas, both geographically and over time. It is a refreshing departure from the “Western Civilization” approach to so many of its topics. There is a lot of discussion of things outside the Levant-Greece-Rome-Europe corridor so prominent in so many treatments. In chapter 3 titled “The Birth of the Gods, the Evolution of House and Home”, for instance, we learn that the domestication of plants and animals occurred independently in 2 areas of the world for certain, and probably 7. The certain 2 are the Fertile Crescent and Mesoamerica. The probably 5 are New Guinea, China, sub-Saharan Africa, the Andes, and eastern North America.
    If you are fascinated by history and ideas, this is a great book to have at your fingertips. It is remarkable that Watson could have assembled, organized, and presented so much information. In the small bits that I know something about, Watson is spot-on!
    13 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2019
    Oh, the length of it! 30+ chapters, each one packed with detail -- it was so daunting that our Book Club divided it up, each one taking several chapters to read and then present salient points to the group. But once I started reading my "assignment," I couldn't stop. It's fascinating. Watson reviews the development of major ideas over time that have greatly influenced civilizations, and "connects the dots" for us in enlightening ways.
    3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Aritra D.
    4.0 out of 5 stars Nice book
    Reviewed in India on July 28, 2023
    Very detailed history of human civilization
  • DawnMontgomery
    5.0 out of 5 stars An amazing book. My thanks and admiration to Peter Watson ...
    Reviewed in Canada on December 30, 2014
    An amazing book. My thanks and admiration to Peter Watson for such exceptional scholarship. Delivery earlier than anticipated also. Great reading for 2015!
  • A. Jarvis
    5.0 out of 5 stars A True Masterpiece!
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 9, 2015
    One of the best books I have ever read. It's over 800 pages, yet I read it three times.
  • Frank Reibold
    4.0 out of 5 stars Ausgewogene Darstellung
    Reviewed in Germany on August 30, 2007
    In diesem Buch stellt der Autor die Entwicklung der wichtigsten Ideen dar (vom Feuer bis zu Freud). Die Darstellung beginnt mit den Erfindungen der Urmenschen (Feuer, Faustkeil, Religion) und endet bei der "Entdeckung" des Unterbewusstseins durch Freud. Das zwanzigste Jahrhundert wird in einem anderen Buch behandelt.

    Einige der Ideen sind:

    - Kapitalismus, Liberalismus, Fabriken, Armut / Reichtum, Adel / Bürgertum / Arbeiter
    - Marx, Sozialismus, Gewerkschaften
    - Religionen und Atheismus
    - Entstehung der Geisteswissenschaften (Soziologie, Wirtschaftswissenschaften)
    - Nationalismus, Imperialismus
    - Verhältnis von Staat und Kirche bzw. Kaiser und Papst
    - Darwins Evolutionstheorie und deren Verbindungen zu Soziologie, Wirtschaftswissenschaften, Rassismus
    - Philosophie von der Antike (Plato, Aristoteles) über Leibniz, Spinoza und Kant bis zum amerikanischen Pragmatismus (Dewey)
    - politische Theorien wie Demokratie und Gewaltenteilung von der Antike über Machiavelli, Locke und Hobbes zur Moderne (vor allem Mill und Marx)
    - Entwicklung der Naturwissenschaften (vor allem Kopernikus, Newton und Galilei) und deren Probleme mit der Inquisition

    Daraus ergeben sich eine Reihe von Fragen, die im Buch auch beantwortet werden:

    - Welche Verbindung besteht zwischen Reformation und Kapitalismus?
    - Warum entstand die führende Zivilisation in Europa?
    - Weshalb waren China, Indien und Islam früher Europa voraus und warum kehrte sich dieses Verhältnis um?

    Das Buch ist auf dem neuesten Stand; so werden z. B. auch schon die Zwergurmenschen auf der Insel Flores (von manchen "Hobbits" genannt) beschrieben. Die Darstellung ist i. d. R. ausgewogen. Nach Ansicht des Autors ist der rote Faden der Ideengeschichte die Suche nach der Seele bzw. dem menschlichen Bewusstsein. Diese Frage habe von den Naturwissenschaften und der Vernunft abgelenkt und zu übernatürlichen Spekulationen geführt; eine allgemein akzeptierte Antwort gibt es bis heute nicht. Deshalb sei die Philosophie des rationalen Aristoteles insgesamt hilfreicher gewesen als die des idealistischen Plato.

    Natürlich wird jeder etwas finden, was seiner Meinung nach besser oder zusätzlich hätte beschrieben werden können. Mir kam z. B. die Darstellung der Wirtschaftswissenschaften etwas zu kurz. Wenn man die Evolution der Wirtschaftswissenschaften von Smith über Ricardo zu Marx beschreibt, hätte man auch die größte Revolution der Wirtschaftswissenschaften erwähnen sollen (nämlich die "subjektive Wertlehre" von Menger, Walras, Jevons um 1870; durch diese wird u. a. Marx' Lohntheorie widerlegt). Die von Menger gegründete "österreichische Schule" stellt die Folgen der Industriellen Revolution nicht so negativ dar wie der Autor: Es stimmt demnach zwar, dass durch die Industrialisierung viele Arme in die Fabriken der Städte strömten, wo sie unter unmenschlichen Bedingungen arbeiten mussten; auf dem Land ging es ihnen aber zuvor noch schlechter (wenn sie dort nicht ohnehin verhungerten). Viele Missstände lassen sich auf die Napoleonischen Kriege und staatliche Eingriffe in die Marktwirtschaft (z. B. Steuern auf Fenster, sodass fensterlose Häuser gebaut wurden) zurück führen. Das kann man in "Capitalism and the Historians" von Hayek nachlesen.

    Ich kann das Buch jedem empfehlen, der seinen Horizont erweitern möchte. Man lernt auf jeder Seite etwas Neues.
  • Amazon Customer
    2.0 out of 5 stars cover damage
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 30, 2018
    I bought it as a gift and I opened the box, the cover was damaged.