World History. (Volume 1) Pre-industrial Civilization and Regional History: History before 1500

Author: Shen Jian
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-09-01
Features: The history of humanity, the history of human civilization and society, and the history of the world are three concepts that are both overlapping and distinct, structured similarly like concentric circles. Among them, the history of humanity is the largest circle, covering more than 300 million years since the first human groups appeared on Earth. The history of human civilization generally refers to the period of human history that has moved beyond barbarism and savagery, has cultural inheritance, and has formed social operation mechanisms, such as the history of such civilized societies, which has been around for about 5,000 to 6,000 years. The history of the world, on the other hand, is the smallest circle, referring to the history since the modern industrial civilization era when human society entered a holistic development and formed a global system structure. As Marx and Engels said, "Large industry has for the first time created world history, because it has made the satisfaction of the needs of every civilized country and of every individual in these countries dependent on the whole world, because it has abolished the natural isolation of each country." The history of this industrial civilization era began around the 16th to 18th centuries and is still continuing and developing. "A World History," as its name implies, is a comprehensive overview of world history, and its object of study should be the development process of human society as a holistic historical movement. It differs from national and regional histories primarily because it takes "the world"—the entirety of human society—as its object of study and research scope. Moreover, it distinguishes itself from the broader history of humanity or the history of human civilization because the central concept it establishes—"the world"—has a special structural meaning rather than a general reference to human society.