Take this chance to get beyond the abstract dates and figures, kings and queens, and battles and wars that make up so many historical accounts in The Other Side of History: Daily Life in the Ancient World. In 48 richly detailed lectures, Professor Robert Garland of Colgate University covers the breadth and depth of human history from the perspective of the so-called ordinary people, from its earliest beginnings through the Middle Ages. The past truly comes alive in this ambitious course, as Professor Garland takes a series of imaginative leaps to put you inside the world of history's anonymous citizens, providing you with a fuller understanding of the distant past.
The Other Side of History: Daily Life in the Ancient World
Discover the breadth and depth of human history from the perspective of the so-called ordinary people, from its earliest beginnings through the Middle Ages.
Rated 4 out of
5
by
mas30 from
Entertaining lectures
I enjoyed these lectures - they were entertaining and informative. The best ones were those on Greece and Rome. I liked the Professor, but I thought he used in his narration far too many clichés.
Date published: 2024-11-16
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Happy Lifelong Learner from
Absolute Best
If I could append exclamation marks to my 5 stars, I would. There is no part of the brain Dr. Garland leaves unsatisfied. Until recently, historical research has ignored the crucial roles ordinary people have played in history, and this course takes giant leaps toward achieving that much-needed exposure. There is much data and information, but this professor also explores ancient lives with empathy and a judicious sprinkling of humor. We may approach history with a "plus ca change" philosophy, but clearly, our lives ARE easier than those of the distant past. I leave this course with the sense that if we can apply our empathy for historical figures to this time--the future's history--we might create a more humane present for us all.
I tried to watch the course slowly, and the saving grace is its 48-lecture size. I left it with the happy outlook toward the other courses by Professor Garland waiting in my watchlist.
Date published: 2024-10-19
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Hppiefrk from
Loved the perspective
I loved it. Love a professor who is passionate about his subject! I appreciated being spoken to as an ancient commoner because i find that area fascinating... lives of the regulars. I thought it gave nice, thought provoking insight into how the majority lived in some of the ancient civilizations. Fun course.
Date published: 2024-09-24
Rated 5 out of
5
by
Kat3 from
Entertaining, thought provoking and informative!
I suppose there are people who could find fault in every book and lecture over time, but I took this course for what it was, and thoroughly enjoyed it! I listened to these while on my morning hikes and they transported back into a time I'm not sure I realized existed, since much of this was truly from the "other side of history". If this professor taught in my college, I may have actually paid attention!
Date published: 2024-09-01
Rated 5 out of
5
by
the professor from
Trying to Survive life in the Ancient World!
I greatly enjoyed everything about this course! Professor Robert Garland was captivating in his delivery of the 48 lectures as he uses subtle humor, a great accent, and rich detail to walk the learner through life from neanderthal/early beginnings to the Late Middle Ages. Dr. Garland covers such topics as being old, a woman, criminal, warrior/soldier, slave, war, disease, being ill, etc. I found the professor's discussion of the Jewish history very enlightening. This course can be enjoyed while working out or just as leisurely learning. I highly recommend the course and plan on watching Professor Garland's other TGC's lecture set. This is well worth the investment of time and resources!
Date published: 2024-04-30
Rated 4 out of
5
by
Mary24 from
Excellent presentation by a wonderful professor
We just finished this whole course and I enthusiastically recommend it. The professor does a terrific job of placing the viewer in the sandals of everyday people who have come before us, helping understand their day-to-day realities, their customs and beliefs, their art and religion, etc. Dr. Garland uses just the right touch of humor with unfailing compassion and respect as he describes what is known about everyday people (including women, slaves, children, the elderly, and others who don’t often get much acknowledgement) in ancient times up to the Middle Ages. We often found ourselves discussing various aspects of his presentations long after we had watched the episodes.
Date published: 2024-04-23
Rated 2 out of
5
by
Ron 1 from
No, presents in a unnecessary perspecitve.
If you're on the left, you'll be okay. If you're not aligned on that count, don't waste your money. :( He brings political perspectives in early on that are NOT relevant.
Date published: 2024-04-09
Rated 5 out of
5
by
janny221 from
living history
Robert Garland always delivers a informative and highly enjoyable lectures
Date published: 2024-03-20
Overview
About
Robert Garland is the Roy D. and Margaret B. Wooster Professor of the Classics, Emeritus, in the Department of the Classics at Colgate University. He has a PhD in Ancient History from University College London. A former Fulbright Scholar, he was also a fellow at the Center for Hellenic Studies in Washington DC and a visiting scholar at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton. He has written 19 books, including Greek Mythology: Gods and Heroes Brought to Life and Roman Legends Brought to Life. He has also published extensively in academic and popular journals and served as a consultant for educational film companies.
Trailer
01: Taking on the Other Side of History
The past comes alive when you consider the imaginary lives of ordinary people-the citizens, soldiers, and slaves who lived on the other side of history. In this course, you'll ask questions that many textbooks never ask....
31 min
02: Being Paleolithic
What does it mean to be human? Take a look at the lives of our ancestors, from ancient hominids to Homo erectus to the earliest humans. Picture yourself as a Neanderthal, whose life was dominated by the environment, and discover the significance of the human mind, language, and art in the Old Stone Age....
32 min
03: Living in Mesopotamia
Step into the world's earliest permanent settlement-the river banks in Mesopotamia. The development of agriculture was a revolution because it allowed humans to live permanently in one place, which led to the invention of writing, the creation of laws, an increase in trade, and technological innovations such as the wheel....
31 min
04: Being Egyptian
What was it like to be an ancient Egyptian? Travel to the world's first Western civilization and explore everyday life during the New Kingdom era. You'll learn about the richness of the Nile, the conservatism and stability of the society, and relics that have survived across millennia-hieroglyphics, papyri, art, and more....
32 min
05: Belonging to an Egyptian Family
Professor Garland takes you deep inside the lives of an ordinary Egyptian family, from marriage, fertility, and the rights of its women, to social gatherings a couple might host or attend. You'll experience the house, its furniture, and even the cosmetics-all the elements of everyday life....
31 min
06: Practicing Egyptian Religion
Egyptian religion was a hierarchical affair, and since common people were not allowed in the temples, they mainly left it to the priests to pray on their behalf. You'll meet some of the gods-Hathor, Amun-Re, Osiris-and learn about the myths attached to them. You'll also learn the ins and outs of the Egyptian priesthood....
31 min
07: Being a Dead Egyptian
Mummies. The Book of the Dead. Tomb robbers. Death was big business in ancient Egypt, and in this lecture you'll discover Egyptian beliefs about the afterlife and the journey from this world to the next. You'll learn how to make a mummy and how to get past Osiris at the gates to the afterlife....
30 min
08: Being an Egyptian Worker
As an ancient Egyptian, you might have been a farmer, a herdsman, a craftsman, a hunter, or, most dangerously, a miner. Take a tour of people in the professions that would been available to you in the village of Deir el-Medina-from educated scribes to the craftsmen who built royal tombs....
31 min
09: Being Minoan and Mycenaean
While most ancient civilizations sprang up near rivers, Minoans and Mycenaeans lived in a thalassocracy-an empire based on control of the sea. This lecture surveys life on the island of Santorini, including the threat of earthquakes and volcanoes, the shift of power from Crete to mainland Greece, and life in the Greek Dark Age....
33 min
10: Being Greek
Explore the world of the Greek polis and of true democracies run by ordinary citizens-that is, free male citizens. Women were cut off from society and kept in the home, and slaves performed much of the labor. After seeing the broad strokes of this society, you'll go inside the mind of a juror casting his ballot at the trial of Socrates....
31 min
11: Growing Up Greek
Growing up in ancient Greece, you'd face a myriad of challenges between birth and adulthood, beginning with whether your father decided to raise you or expose you to the elements shortly after birth. See what your childhood would have been like, from the games you'd play to the schools you'd attend....
30 min
12: Being a Greek Slave
What are the origins of slavery? Although ancient Greeks didn't invent the concept, they did leave records. You'll discover the range of work slaves did, from performing domestic duties to being worked to death in the mines. Then travel to Sparta, where helot slaves outnumbered free Spartans by as many as 7 to 1....
32 min
13: Being a Greek Soldier or Sailor
Go inside a phalanx battle and experience it as an average citizen-soldier or hoplite. Then turn to Sparta, a society that revolved around military life from childhood education to retirement at age 60. Finally, explore the rise of Greek mercenaries, whom some Greek writers feared were a threat to civilization....
30 min
14: Being a Greek Woman
This lecture takes you into the world of Athenian women, who were subjugated to males all their lives and who rarely left the home except for festivals and funerals. You'll also look at the hetaerae-or female companions-whose lives were relatively independent....
31 min
15: Relaxing Greek Style
As a Greek citizen, your life would have been much more leisurely and relaxed on a day-to-day basis than ours is today. Put yourself in the sandals of an average citizen taking a morning stroll to the agora or enjoying a lively evening of drinking and discussion at a symposium. Then tour the clubs, witness the athletic events, and participate in the festivals that would have been part of your dail...
30 min
16: Being a Greek Refugee
Consider the lives of those truly on the other side of history-the refugees long ignored by historians. From the 8th to the 6th centuries B.C., a large percentage of Greeks were uprooted from their homelands. This lecture shows you the harrowing colonization process from the point of view of the refugees themselves....
31 min
17: Being a Sick or Disabled Greek
What was it like to live in the world before painkillers, antibiotics, and modern medicine? Disability Studies is a relatively new form of scholarship, and the field shows that despite Greek sculptures depicting the idealized human form, real people in the ancient world were at great risk for serious injuries, disfigurement, and disease. Find out the ancients' perspective on disability, deformity,...
31 min
18: Practicing Greek Religion
Take a look at what, in many ways, is one of the most bizarre religious systems in human history-a system with no rules, no holy book, and no orthodoxy. You'll meet some of the famous gods of Mount Olympus and the Underworld, with their jealousies and other human emotions, and you'll experience the festivals and observances that were part of Greek religion....
33 min
19: Being an Old Greek
Despite their lower life expectancy and higher infant mortality, some Greeks managed to live to a ripe old age, especially the poets and philosophers, who lived a more sedentary life. Discover the secrets to their longevity, and how you would support yourself in an era without anything like today's retirement systems....
29 min
20: Being a Dead Greek
An ancient Greek faced death head on. You would die in the home, surrounded by family, and afterward women would tend to your body and sing dirges in your honor. Your corpse would be tainted with miasma-pollution-and would be buried outside the city. Meanwhile, your spirit would be carried across the River Styx to Hades, where life among the shades of the dead awaited you....
30 min
21: Being Persian
Turn to ancient Persia, a kingdom that came from the other side of history and rose to greatness. See how Cyrus the Great was a tolerant, pragmatic ruler, who allowed his subjects to maintain certain rights. Then see how Darius built roads, adopted a currency, and created an innovative system of communication and administration....
32 min
22: Living in Hellenistic Egypt
Revisit Egypt in the years after Alexander the Great, an era when Greek (Hellenistic) culture spread throughout the region. Tour the city of Alexandria, which was arguably the greatest city of the ancient world and which now lies mostly beneath the sea. Then explore the ethnic tensions between the Egyptians, Greeks, and Jews....
32 min
23: Being Roman
See how the Romans extended citizenship, expanding the word "Roman" to encompass more than just a person from Rome itself. As Vergil's Aeneid shows, Romans considered it their civic duty to expand their territory for the public good; yet, despite this noble aspiration, they also had a penchant for violence and cruelty....
30 min
24: Being a Roman Slave
Could Romans have achieved all they did without the labor of slaves? Imagine yourself as part of the largest slave force in human history, perhaps as an agricultural slave worked to death or as a semi-independent craftsman. Then explore manumission, the process by which domestic slaves were sometimes freed....
31 min
25: Being a Roman Soldier
Find out what daily life was like for a Roman soldier, from the training to engagement on the battlefield. You'll discover how the army was structured, what benefits you could expect, and what would happen if you were disobedient. Finally, you'll explore what you'd do when you were not fighting-likely constructing the Roman road system....
31 min
26: Being a Roman Woman
As in ancient Greek society, a Roman woman lived on the other side of history under the domination of the paterfamilias-most likely her father or husband-yet examples of love letters and poems offer evidence that loving marriages did exist. This lecture explores wedding rituals, the complexity of Roman women's roles in society, and how opportunities for women differed based on class status....
31 min
27: Being a Poor Roman
Put yourself into the world of Rome's plebian class. This lecture takes you to the leaky, rat-infested housing where the urban poor suffered from disease and malnutrition, and you'll experience the threat of fire that hung over Rome in the 1st century A.D. You'll also get a glimpse of what sustained the day-to-day life of the poor....
30 min
28: Being a Rich Roman
Now check out the lives of the rich. You'll tour the grand house in the city and the countryside, learn about the customs of dress, food, and hygiene, and follow a rich Roman around for the day-complete with doting clients who make him seem important....
28 min
29: Being a Roman Celebrity
"Celebrity" is not a modern phenomenon. Politicians, criminals, actors, and even ordinary citizens in ancient Rome strove for recognition. Here you'll chart the lives of some of Rome's celebrities, including gladiators, charioteers, and the emperor Nero. You'll also look at women who knew how to hog the limelight, including Cleopatra and Theodora....
30 min
30: Being a Roman Criminal
Experience the world of Roman crime and punishment, law and order. You'll witness crime ranging from midnight muggings to piracy to bandits in the countryside, and you'll discover the variety of punishments meted out in a society lacking prisons-from loss of civic rights and exile to impalement and crucifixion....
30 min
31: Relaxing Roman Style
The Romans balanced the sobriety of running an empire with a healthy need to relax. Delve into the spectator side of Roman society and learn about its public games-chariot races, theatrical performances, gladiatorial combats, and circuses. Experience the venues, the violence, and the excitement of relaxing Roman style....
30 min
32: Practicing Roman Religion
Cicero called the Romans the most religious of all mortals. See what religion meant in the Roman world, both inside the family, where the paterfamilias supervised various ceremonies, and in the state at large, whose emperor was considered divine. You'll also compare how the Roman view of the gods differed from the Greek perspective....
30 min
33: Being Jewish under Roman Rule
Discover the problem of being a monotheist in a polytheistic state-with the Romans requiring the Jews to acknowledge their gods and the divinity of their emperor. This conflict escalated in the 1st century, leading first, to acts of terrorism; then, to the outbreak of the Jewish revolt of A.D. 66; next, to the destruction of Jerusalem; and finally, to the diaspora....
31 min
34: Being Christian under Roman Rule
Among the competitors of Roman polytheism was a religion that preached love and salvation for the poor, the meek, and the downtrodden-bringing those on the other side of history to the fore. Chart the rise of Christianity over the first few centuries, and explore the daily lives of those who resolutely held their faith in the face of Roman persecution....
29 min
35: Being a Celt in Ancient Britain
Shift your attention to the world of the Celts, a mysterious European race that left few excavation sites-and none in Britain. This lecture takes you into the daily life of a Celtic village during the Iron Age, a world of tribes and chieftains, of war and bravery, and of the legendary Druids....
31 min
36: Being a Roman Briton
Picture what it was like to be a British native under Roman rule. How did you make peace with being subjugated when Claudius subjugated you in A.D. 43? The Romans built cities and showed natives new, more efficient agricultural practices, and protected the island for 365 years. After all that, how would you have felt when they abandoned you?...
29 min
37: Being Anglo-Saxon
Meet the people who filled the vacuum left by the Romans. The Anglo-Saxons, a warrior culture responsible for King Arthur and Beowulf, invaded Britain at the beginning of the so-called Dark Ages. In addition to meeting the wealthy thanes, struggling peasants, and unfortunate slaves, you'll examine the lives of monks and nuns....
30 min
38: Being a Viking Raider
The Vikings have always been on the "other side" of history, their deeds recorded only by their victims. In this lecture, you'll get at the truth of this enigmatic culture. While a small number were the raiders we know from other accounts, the Vikings had a vibrant trading culture based on the sea....
30 min
39: Living under Norman Rule
The last successful invasion of England was by the Normans, who won the well-known Battle of Hastings in 1066. Go inside that invasion and learn about Norman culture and its lasting influence on the British-especially the creation of a strong central government that has fortified the island to the present....
31 min
40: Being Medieval
From the Magna Carta, which granted rights to ordinary citizens, to the rise of vernacular English, as evidenced by The Canterbury Tales, the Middle Ages marked a turning point for the "other side" of history. Find out what influenced life for ordinary people, from the control of the church to the horrors of the infamous Black Death....
29 min
41: Being Poor in the Middle Ages
Visit the daily life of peasants in the wake of the Black Death. Experiencing economic hardship due in part to the feudal system, the poor organized the Peasants' Revolt in 1381, the first popular uprising of its kind. Beyond the dramatic revolt, this lecture takes you to the dinner tables of everyday people, and to the anonymous cemeteries where they'd be buried....
30 min
42: Being a Medieval Woman
Like the ancient world, the Middle Ages was patriarchal and male-dominated, so a woman had few options-to get married, to become a nun, or to turn to prostitution. But Chaucer's Wife of Bath, the seducer in "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," and the notion of courtly love all added new dimensions to womanhood....
28 min
43: Being a Medieval Christian or Heretic
Look at ways in which the medieval church wielded enormous influence over the lives of ordinary people, and how it did everything in its power to maintain its influence. You'll witness life as a clergyman, go into the world of a monastery, and see what became of those the church deemed heretics....
29 min
44: Being a Medieval Knight
Were the Middle Ages really an era of knights in shining armor and damsels in distress? In this lecture you'll gain new insights into the realities of knighthood, from the rigorous training during childhood to the bloodthirstiness of battle. You'll also study the code of chivalry, where courtesy is the mark of a civilized man....
29 min
45: Being a Crusader
Unpack the term "Crusade" and situate it in its cultural context. When Pope Urban said it was the Christians' duty to take up arms against the "infidels," ordinary people were swept up in the idea that they were fighting to save Christianity and their own souls against the advance of Islam....
30 min
46: Being a Pilgrim
Imagine you were one of Chaucer's pilgrims on your way to visit the tomb of Thomas Becket. Chaucer died before he could finish his tales, but this lecture takes you on the road from London all the way to the massive crowds at Canterbury. Then turn to a more hazardous journey, the 3,000-mile trek from England to Jerusalem to visit the holiest shrine in Christendom....
28 min
47: Relaxing Medieval Style
Soccer. Chess. Skating. Music. Life in the Middle Ages was full of misery and toil, but the world of sports and leisure was not that different from today. Learn about the origins of soccer, the history of chess, the variety of medieval music, and more. Conclude with a look at touring entertainers and professional guilds....
32 min
48: Daily Life Matters
Reflect on the humanistic value of putting yourself in the hearts and minds of ordinary people from the Neanderthal era to the late Middle Ages. The difference between their lives and ours is profound, yet this course leaves you with an equally profound connection to the anonymous majority who make up the other side of history....
36 min
