This series offers a comprehensive exploration of Western intellectual history, tracing the evolution of ideas from the early medieval period to the modern era. It delves into the pivotal philosophical, scientific, and cultural currents that have shaped Western thought. Each volume reveals how concepts developed and how these intellectual traditions influenced civilization. It's an essential journey for understanding the roots of contemporary thinking.
Burrow examines the impact of science and social thought on European intellectual life prior to World War I. He considers ideas in physics, social evolution and social Darwinism, and anxieties about modernity and personal identity.
Historian William J. Bouwsma here examines the conventional view of the European Renaissance as the root and foundation of modern culture, arguing instead that while it had a beginning and a climax, the Renaissance also had an ending.