The Myth of 'Western Civilisation'

Not Just the Tudors

History Hit

History

4.8 • 3K Ratings

🗓️ 9 March 2023

⏱️ 49 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

'Western Civilisation' is often thought of as a continuous thread through the centuries - from classical antiquity to the countries of the modern West - connecting Plato to NATO.

But in her new book - The West: A New History of an Old Idea - archaeologist and historian Professor Naoìse Mac Sweeney charts the history of 'the West' as an invention used to justify imperialism and racism - a notion that can be disproved by the lives of 14 historical figures.

In this episode of Not Just the Tudors, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb talks to Professor Mac Sweeney, about four of these fascinating figures - Tullia d’Aragona, Safiye Sultan, Francis Bacon and Nzinga of Ndongo & Matamba - whose remarkable lives correct our telling of Western history.

This episode was edited and produced by Rob Weinberg.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	There has traditionally been a grand narrative of Western civilization presenting an unbroken
0:12.5	line from ancient Greece and Rome to today's liberal democratic Western states.
0:19.2	Today's guest argues that this is not supported by the evidence.
0:23.6	Her new book The West explores the lives of 14 historical women and men over 2,500
0:30.1	years who give us a counter narrative.
0:33.7	Four of those individuals fall conveniently in our period and also rather neatly allow
0:38.7	us to explore alternative narratives, paths not taken, the crystallization of the idea
0:44.8	of the West and how European encounters with non-Europeans solidified this idea.
0:50.8	In short, we find the early modern period is the decisive one.
0:55.0	The scholar who has created this alternative way of seeing history and how we talk about
0:59.8	it and who joins me today is Nisha McSwini, who is professor of classical archaeology at
1:05.6	the University of Vienna.
1:07.3	Her previous books have explored ancient Iona, Troy and Homer's Iliad.
1:13.3	And in this sparkling account of and challenge two old myths, Professor McSwini is doing
1:19.4	something appropriately epic.
1:21.8	I'm delighted to welcome her to talk to me about it.
1:30.5	Professor McSwini, welcome to not just the tutors, it's an absolute treat to have you
1:34.7	on to talk about this new and exciting book of yours.
1:37.9	Thank you very much, it's fantastic to be here.
1:40.7	We're going to spend most of this podcast thinking about four central chapters in your book
1:47.0	that relate to our period.
1:49.7	And like all the chapters in your book, they each feature a person, an individual.
	...

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