Year: 2008

Flaubert is most famous for Madame Bovary. Despite now being regarded as one of the all time classics of literature Madame Bovary at the time got Flaubert into a lot…

 

There is something very satisfying in reading history written by contemporaries in the original text version. It has that feeling that you are getting it as it is – and you can also pick up on what things seemed important at the time without the benefit of hindsight.

I am now actively working on this project again. The easy bit has been rereading the book – I am half way through volume 3 and enjoying it immensely. My current ambition is to record a 10-15 minute podcast for every chapter, which taken together would give a feel for what the book is about.

The period of upheaval that started with the French Revolution and ended at Waterloo cries out to be treated as a single phenomenon. From the moment of the storming of the Bastille to the final breaking of the French lines at Waterloo the continent of Europe and to some extent the rest of the World, was in perpetual conflict for 26 years. When the fighting was over the course of history had changed forever.

This really is the big one! It is impossible to do justice to this book in a single blog post but it is also impossible to ignore it. My solution is to review individual chapters in their own right. I don’t know how many I will do, maybe not many and probably not all, but I will see how it goes.

The book really is one of those books that changed the way the world was seen when it came out, and changes the way you see the world when you read it. It was started in 1776 and not completed until 1789. From reading it you learn much about ancient Rome, but you also learn a lot about the attitudes of eighteenth century England. In turn, this also gives you some insight into our own time.