13 h 18 minAudiobook13 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 327 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 327 pagesAbout this book
What happens to our quarrels when we see them against the whole span of human history?
H. G. Wells begins with a world without people—or life. Earth takes its place in space, then fish, reptiles and mammals enter the story. A Short History of the World follows this long path toward humanity before turning to grain, settled homes and cities. Each change finds its place in a sweeping map of time.
From Greece, India and China, Wells moves through Rome, the rise of Islam, the Mongols and medieval Europe toward machines, revolutions and war. His guide is a bold idea: humanity shares one past, and that shared past should shape how people act. Published in 1922, this is an opinionated account, not an even-handed view of every culture.
What you’ll discover
- A planet before people Feel the scale of time as Wells begins long before the first humans appear.
- The roots of city life Follow the shift toward farming as people sow grain, keep animals and settle.
- Questions about living Explore how Wells places Greek thought, Buddha and Confucius within the wider human story.
- Empires meeting and clashing Trace a path through Rome, Islam and the Mongols as peoples meet and struggle.
- The hope of cooperation Consider Wells's argument that seeing humanity as one family should change our choices.
Is it for you?
This book suits readers who want one clear path through all of history, and those who like a bold, opinionated guide. If you need up-to-date science or a balanced view of every culture, you may find its age and its confident judgments limiting.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- The Earth is old and life is slow
- Humans emerge from a long dark prehistory
- Farming and writing create the first cities
- Empires, traders and the first great prophets
- Greece shows what free thought can do
- Buddha and Confucius ask how to live
- Rome builds an empire and Christianity rises
- Islam, the Mongols and a reviving Europe
- Machines, revolution and the hope of one world
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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A Short History of the World
by H. G. Wells· 1922
Earth’s formation and human history form one continuous account.
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Language: Deutsch
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 9
The Earth is old and life is slow
Wells opens with the Earth as one planet among many, circling a sun that is itself one star among countless others. He wants the reader to feel the scale of time before a single human appears. The planet cools, seas form, and rock is laid down in layers. Those layers hold the remains of creatures that lived and died long ago.
He reads that rocky record as a story. Early life is simple and lives in water. Over very long ages come fishes, then creatures that crawl onto land, then the great reptiles that rule the Earth for a vast stretch of time. Wells likes to describe these animals vividly, because he wants the past to seem real rather than remote.
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The author
H. G. Wells
1866–1946 · English science fiction novelist
H. G. Wells (1866–1946) was an English writer born in Bromley, Kent. He wrote novels, short stories and nonfiction. His novels included The Time Machine (1895), The Island of Doctor Moreau (1896), The Invisible Man (1897) and The War of the Worlds (1898). He died in London.
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What is A Short History of the World about?
It is a one-volume account of human history, beginning with the formation of the Earth and early life. It then covers prehistoric people, the first cities, ancient empires, religions, Rome, Islam, medieval Europe and the modern age up to the early 1920s.
Is A Short History of the World the same as The Outline of History?
No. It is a separately written, shorter work that draws on the same material as his much larger Outline of History, published in 1920. The short version appeared in 1922 and was meant for readers who wanted the main story in a single, easier volume.
When was A Short History of the World written?
It was published in 1922, soon after the First World War. That date shapes its tone, since Wells hoped that knowing a shared human past might help nations cooperate and avoid another great war.
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