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Sources of World Societies, Volume 1
Twelfth Edition©2021 Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks; Patricia Buckley Ebrey; Roger B. Beck; Jerry Davila; Clare Haru Crowston; John P. McKay
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Sources of World Societies shares a wide range of historical voices, aligned with the chapters of the core textbook, in a simple, effective, and approachable way. The two-volume primary source reader includes a large variety of documents and images representing political, social, and cultural history – all of which can help spark discussion between you and your classmates.
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Learn MoreTable of Contents
Preface
Chapter 1: The Earliest Human Societies, to 2500 B.C.E.
Viewpoints: Origin Stories
1-1 An Indian View of Creation
From the Rig Veda "The Creation Hymn" (ca. 600 B.C.E.)
1-2 The Yuchi People Explain Their Origins
YUCHI TRIBE OF NORTH AMERICA, In the Beginning (ca. 1929)
1-3 The Hebrew Account of Creation
The Book of Genesis
1-4 A Greek Description of Creation
HESIOD, From Theogony (ca. 700 B.C.E.)
1-5 Australian Concepts of Spiritual Power
Aboriginal Cave Painting of a Wandjina (ca. 2000 B.C.E.)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 2: The Rise of the State in Southwest Asia and the Nile Valley 3200-500 B.C.E.
2-1 A Mesopotamian Quest for Immortality
From The Epic of Gilgamesh
2-2 Law and Order in Ancient Babylonia
HAMMURABI, Hammurabi’s Code: Laws on Society and Family Life (ca. 1800 B.C.E.)
2-3 Moses Leads the Hebrews from Egypt
Book of Exodus (ca. 950-450 B.C.E.)
Viewpoints: Faulty Merchandise in the Ancient World
2-4 A Babylonian Merchant Complains about Mistreatment
Letter from a Babylonian Copper Merchant (ca. 1750 B.C.E.)
2-5 An Egyptian Priest Complains about Honey
Letter from an Egyptian temple official (ca. 1200 B.C.E.)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 3: The Foundation of Indian Society to 300 C.E.
3-1 Student-Teacher Dialogue in the Upanishads
From the Chandogya Upanishads
Viewpoints: The Buddhist Path to Enlightenment
3-2 Suffering and Enlightenment
THE BUDDAH, The Buddha Obtains Enlightenment (ca. 530-29 B.C.E.)
3-3 Ashoka Makes His Will Known
ASHOKA, From Thirteenth Rock Edict (256 B.C.E.)
3-4 Artistic Depictions of the Buddha
Miracle of the Buddha Walking on the River Nairanjana
3-5 Social Mores in Ancient India
From The Laws of Manu (ca. 100 B.C.E.-200 C.E.)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 4: China’s Classical Age, to 221 B.C.E.
4-1 Art and Culture in Shang China
Detail of Ritual Vase known as the Tigress (ca. 1200 B.C.E.)
4-2 Heaven’s Mandate
From Book of Documents (ca. 900-100 B.C.E.)
Viewpoints: Philosophical Responses to Social and Political Disorder
4-3 Confucian Maxims and Sayings
CONFUCIUS, From Analects (ca. 500 B.C.E. – 50 C.E.)
4-4 Laozi Offers Advice on Following the Way
LAOZI, From Dao De Jing: Administering the Empire (ca. 500-400 B.C.E.)
4-5 Han Fei Lays Out the Legalist View of Good Government
HAN FEI, The Five Vermin (ca. 250-25 B.C.E.)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 5: The Greek Experience, 3500-30 B.C.E.
Viewpoints: Greek Playwrights on Families, Fate, and Choice
5-1 A Father Sacrifices His Daughter
AESCHYLUS, Agamemnon
5-2 A Sister Buries Her Brother
SOPHICLES, Antigone
5-3 Socrates Defends Himself Against Criminal Charges
PLATO, From Apologia (ca. 399 B.C.E.)
Viewpoints: Depicting the Human Form
5-4 A Hellenic Depiction of Physical Perfection
Artemision Bronze (ca. 460 B.C.E.)
5-5 A Hellenistic Depiction of Powerful Emotions
Laocoön and His Sons (ca. 20 B.C.E.-70 C.E.)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 6: The World of Rome ca. 750 B.C.E. – 400 C.E.
6-1 The Romans Set Their Basic Laws in Stone
The Twelve Tables (ca. 450 B.C.E.)
6-2 Plutarch Describes a Man Who Would Be King
PLUTARCH, On Julius Caesar, A Man of Unlimited Ambition (ca. 100 C.E.)
6-3 The Senate Gives Augustus an Altar
Ara Pacis Augustae (13 B.C.E.)
Viewpoints: Christianity and the Roman State
6-4 An Official Asks for Advice on Dealing with Christians
PLINY THE YOUNGER, Letters to and from the Emperor Trajan on Christians (111-113 C.E.)
6-5 A Christian Defends His Religion Against Roman Persecution
TERTULLIAN, From Apologia (ca. 197 C.E.)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 7: East Asia and the Spread of Buddhism, 221 B.C.E.-800 C.E.
7-1 A Chinese Historian Describes a Nomadic People
SIMA QIAN, From The Records of the Historian: On the Xiongnu (ca. 109-86 B.C.E.)
7-2 What Makes a Good Woman?
BAN ZHAO, From Lessons for Women (ca. 80 C.E.)
Viewpoints: Buddhism in China
7-3 Reconciling Buddhism with Traditional Chinese Values
HAN YU, From Lives of the Eminent Monks: Zhu Seng Du (ca. 550 C.E.)
7-4 Emperor Wuzong Cracks Down on Buddhism
EMPEROR WUZONG, Edict on the Suppression of Buddhism (845 C.E.)
7-5 Cultural Fusion in Medieval Japan
Hachiman, Shinto God of War, in the Guise of a Buddhist Monk (ca. 1100-1300 C.E.)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 8: Continuity and Change in Europe and Western Asia, 200-850
8-1 Plague Strikes the Eastern Roman Empire, 542
PROCOPIUS, History of the Wars
8-2 Rules for a Religious Community
SAINT BENEDICT OF NURSIA, From The Rule of Saint Benedict: Work and Pray (529)
8-3 A Germanic People Create a Code of Law
The Law of the Salian Franks (ca. 500-600)
Viewpoints: Charlemagne and His Family
8-4 Einhard Describes Charlemagne’s Private Life
EINHARD, From The Life of Charlemagne (ca. 817-836)
8-5 A Painter Portrays the Royal Couple
Charlemagne and his Second Wife Hildegard
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 9: The Islamic World, 600-1400
9-1 God and Believers in the Qur'an
Qur'an (ca. 650)
9-2 Geometry and Islamic Design
Great Mosque of Córdoba, Spain, and Gate of Al Hakam II, Detail (987)
9-3 A Muslim Philosopher on Reason, Knowledge, and Devotion to God
IBN RUSHID, or AVERROËS, On the Harmony of Religions and Philosophy, ca. 1190
Viewpoints: Abbasid Baghdad
9-4 A Jewish Traveler Visits Baghdad
BENJAMIN OF TUDELA, From Book of Travels (ca. 1159-1172)
9-5 An Islamic Geographer Describes Baghdad
YAQUT AL- HAMAWI, Dictionary of Countries (1224-1228)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 10: African Societies and Kingdoms, 1000 B.C.E.-1500 C.E.
Viewpoints: Outsiders' Views of Sub-Saharan Africa
10-1 A Muslim Traveler Describes Ghana and Mali
ABU UBAYDALLAH AL-BAKRI, From The Book of Routes and Realms (ca. 1067-1068)
10-2 Fact and Fiction in an Account of Sub-Saharan Africa
ABU HAMID MUHAMMAD AL-ANDALUSI AL-GHARNATI, From Gift of the Spirit (ca. 1120-1170)
10-3 Leo Africanus Describes Timbuktu to a European Audience
LEO AFRICANUS (AL-HASAN IBN MUHAMMAD AL-WAZZAN AL-FASI), From The History and Description of Africa (1526)
10-4 A History of West Africa by West Africans
From Epic of Sundiata (ca. 1250)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 11: The Americas, to 1500 C.E.
11-1 Obligations Under Inca Rule
The First Chronicle of Good Government on the History of the World and the Incas up to 1615 (1616)
11-2 The Founding of Tenochtitlán and the Origins of the Aztec Empire
The Codex Mendoza (ca. 1541)
11-3 Diego Durán Describes Mexica Customs
DIEGO DURAN, From Book of the Gods and Rites (ca. 1576-1579)
Viewpoints: The Importance of the Ball Game in Maya Society
11-4 The Rules and Objectives of a Maya Ball Game
ANTONIO DE HERRERA Y TORDESILLAS, On the Maya Ball Game Tlachtli (ca. 1598)
11-5 The Gods Challenge Two Maya Heroes to a Game of Tlachtli
FATHER FRANCISCO XIMENEZ, From Popol Vuh (ca. 1701-1703)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 12: States and Cultures in East Asia, 800-1400
Viewpoints: Elite Values in Feudal Japan
12-1 Marriage and Female Virtue
MURASAKI SHIKIBU, From The Tale of Genji (ca. 1021)
12-2 Depiction of an Aristocratic Woman
The Poet Koōgimi, from the Fujifusa version of the Thirty-six Poetic Immortals handscroll
12-3 The Experience of War in Feudal Japan
From The Tale of the Heike (ca. 1250)
12-4 The Islamic World as Seen from a Chinese Perspective
CHAU JU-KUA, On the Arab People of Quanzhou (ca. 1250)
12-5 Wang Eight and His Wife
HONG MAI, From Yijian zhi
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 13: Cultural Exchange in Central and Southern Asia, to 1400
Viewpoints: The Mongols and Their Conquests
13-1 Observations on Mongol Rule in China
Epitaph for the Honorable Menggu (ca. 1272)
13-3 The Role of a Mongol Leader in Battle
RASHID-AL-DIN, Chinggis Khan Fighting the Tartars (ca. 1300)
13-3 A European Merchant Travels the Silk Road
MARCO POLO, From Travels: Description of the World (ca. 1298)
13-4 Hindu Description of the Ideal Wife
VATSYAYANA, From the Kamasutra: About a Wife (ca. 150-1200)
13-5 A Muslim Scholar Offers Guidance to His Fellow Believers
MAULANA BURHAN UD-DIN MARGHINANI, From Guidance: Alms, Marriage, and Testimony (ca. 1197)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 14: Europe and Western Asia in the Middle Ages, 850-1450
14-1 Royal Power and the Rule of Law
KING JOHN OF ENGLAND, From Magna Carta: The Great Charter of Liberties (1215)
14-2 The Pope Declares His Own Power
POPE BONIFACE VIII, Unam Sanctam (1302)
14-3 A Scholastic Places Logic in the Service of Theology
THOMAS AQUINAS, From Summa Theologica: Can It Be Demonstrated That God Exists? (1268)
Viewpoints: Men and Women’s Work in Medieval Cities
14-4 A Lawyer Apprentices His Son
Apprenticeship Contract for a Money-Changer (1248)
14-5 A Writer Provides Advice to Women
CHRISTINE DE PIZAN, Advice to the Wives of Artisans, from The Treasure of the City of Ladies (1405)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 15: Europe in the Renaissance and Reformation, 1350-1600
Viewpoints: The Intellectual Foundations of the Renaissance
15-1 Petrarch Expresses His Admiration for Classical and Christian Works
PETRARCH, Letters (ca. 1354, 1360)
15-2 Pico della Mirandola Argues for the Importance of Philosophical Debate
PICO DELLA MIRANDOLA, From On the Dignity of Man (1486)
15-3 A Renaissance Painter Portrays Powerful Women
ARTEMISIA GENTILESCHI, Judith and her Maidservant with the Head of Holofernes (1625)
15-4 Luther Calls for a Break with the Catholic Church
MARTIN LUTHER, From Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation (1520)
15-5 John Calvin Explains His Views on Faith and the Clergy
JOHN CALVIN, From Instruction in Faith (1537)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Chapter 16: The Acceleration of Global Contact, 1450–1600
16-1 The World as Europeans Knew it in 1502
World Map (1502)
Viewpoints: The Motives of Columbus and His Patrons
16-2 Columbus Defends His Accomplishments
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, Letter from the Third Voyage (1493)
16-3 Spanish Ambitions in the New World
THEODORE DE BRY, Columbus at Hispaniola (ca. 1590)
16-4 Spanish Conquest of the Aztecs
BERNARDINO DE SAHAGÚN, From General History of the Things of New Spain (ca. 1545-1578)
16-5 Blending Indigenous and European Style
ANDRÉS SÁNCHEZ GALLQUE, The Mulatto Gentlemen of Esmeraldas (1599)
COMPARATIVE QUESTIONS
Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks
Merry E. Wiesner-Hanks(Ph.D., University of Wisconsin–Madison) is Distinguished Professor of History, emerita, at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. She is the long-time Senior Editor of the Sixteenth Century Journal and the author or editor of more than thirty books, including A Concise History of the World. From 2017 to 2019 she served as the president of the World History Association.
Patricia Buckley Ebrey
Patricia B. Ebrey (Ph.D., Columbia University) is professor of history at the University of Washington in Seattle. Editor of the Journal of Chinese History, she is the author or editor of some twenty books, including The Cambridge Illustrated History of China and Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook, as well as more specialized books on Song dynasty China. In 2014 she was awarded the American Historical Association’s Award for Scholarly Distinction and in 2020 the Association for Asian Studies Award for Outstanding Contributions to Asian Studies.
Roger B. Beck
Roger B. Beck (Ph.D., Indiana University) is Distinguished Professor of African and twentieth-century world history at Eastern Illinois University. His publications include The History of South Africa; a translation of P. J. van der Merwe’s The Migrant Farmer in the History of the Cape Colony, 1657–1842; and more than a hundred articles, book chapters, and reviews. In 2018 he received the Pioneer in World History award from the World History Association, its highest honor.
Jerry Davila
Jerry Dávila (Ph.D., Brown University) is Jorge Paulo Lemann Chair of Brazilian History and directs the Global Institute at the University of Illinois. He is the author of Dictatorship in South America; Hotel Trópico: Brazil and the Challenge of African Decolonization, winner of the Latin Studies Association Brazil Section Book Prize; and Diploma of Whiteness: Race and Social Policy in Brazil, 1917–1945. He has served as president of the Conference on Latin American History.
Clare Haru Crowston
Clare Haru Crowston (Ph.D., Cornell University) teaches at the University of Illinois, where she is currently professor of history and department chair. She is the author of Credit, Fashion, Sex: Economies of Regard in Old Regime France and Fabricating Women: The Seamstresses of Old Regime France, 1675–1791, which won the Berkshire and Hagley Prizes. She edited two special issues of the Journal of Women’s History, has published numerous journal articles and reviews, and is a p
John P. McKay
John P. McKay (Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley) is professor emeritus at the University of Illinois. He has written or edited numerous works, including the Herbert Baxter Adams Prize-winning book Pioneers for Profit: Foreign Entrepreneurship and Russian Industrialization, 1885-1913.
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