The Other Side of History - Robert Garland

⭐ 10.0/10

(Originally written by KathleenQ)

Absolutely phenomenal (If you're into ancient history, which I am.) I bought this Audible exclusive from the Great Courses on Joe's recommendation, and I did not regret it. (It's more of a recorded lecture series, but WeView does not have a category for that.)

"The other side of history" refers to the side history that never got recorded: the stories of vast majority of humans who were poor, disabled, enslaved, and oppressed. Garland goes to great lengths to uncover these stories via archaeological study, to try to understand what life was like for ordinary people. He starts in the paleolithic era, and goes through ancient Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Persia, Rome, and medieval England. He tries to put you in the shoes of a Greek slave, a beggar in Ancient Roman, a medieval monk besieged by Vikings. There are 48 lectures in all, so it covers A LOT.

It was often hard to listen to, honestly, because history is BRUTAL. Humans are TERRIBLE. My biggest takeaway was the realization that everything impressive the West has accomplished was on the backs of slaves. Every ancient civilization upheld slavery, and up to 25% of a given civilization was made up of slaves who worked the mines, forged the metal, grew the crops, and wove the fabric, to make those great buildings and writings and philosophies possible. It was so important and valuable for me to see the passing of history through these people's eyes, instead of the influential writers and thinkers we think of when we consider these time periods.

Unsurprisingly, the medieval period was my favourite, and now I want to go to England again and see everything through this new perspective. Also Rome and Greece and Egypt, please.

It was very thought provoking, moving, and informative. But also, 24 hours long. It took me several months to get through.