Turning Points in Modern History

By: Vejas Gabriel Liulevicius, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Vejas Gabriel Liulevicius

This lecture series takes you on a far-reaching journey around the globe - from China to the Americas to New Zealand - to shed light on how two dozen of the top discoveries, inventions, political upheavals, and ideas since 1400 have shaped the modern world. In just 24 thought-provoking lectures, you'll get the amazing story of how life as we know it developed.

Starting in the early 15th century and culminating in the age of social media, you'll encounter astounding threads that weave through the centuries, joining these turning points in ways that may come as a revelation. You'll also witness turning points with repercussions we can only speculate about because they are still very much in the process of turning.

Professor Liulevicius doesn't merely recount the greatest events of history, but rather has selected true catalysts in provoking changes in worldview. Some of the events you'll investigate, including the discovery of the New World and the fall of the Berlin Wall, will immediately resonate as watershed moments. The global significance of other pivotal events may only become apparent through the detailed analysis contained in these lectures, such as the publication of the Enlightenment-era Encyclopédie and the Russo-Japanese War - which has been historically overshadowed by the two world wars that followed.

As you discover how turning points such as the discovery of penicillin and the opening of East Berlin hinged on chance, accident, and, in some cases, sheer luck, you'll realize how easily history might have played out differently.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2013 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2013 The Great Courses

Excellent throughout

One of the best courses I've listened too. Great job. Didn't want it to end! I was a little worried that he would have an accent from the sound of his last name but there was no accent at all.

One of the better syntheses by Great Courses.

one of the better or best syntheses by Great courses. certainly in the top five that I have listened to. very well done connecting previous lectures to the current one

The Greatest Person to Reside in Tennessee since Elvis

If Prof. Liulevicius had taught at my school, I would have gotten up extra early just to make sure to register in time for every one of his classes. I'm sure that all of these instructors are geniuses, but this man loves teaching and you can hear it in his voice and in the way he structures his lecture. I'll admit, I'm now a total fangirl and I'll throw my money at anything that has his name on it.

Great course by a great professor...

I've said it before, anything done by Prof. Liulevicius is worth listening to. This lives up to being a great course for the Great Courses.

Thought of a thinker

I liked it because it was for wise people. It shows how important it is to be an individual with ideas that can be worked on. Anybody that can read or listen should . I recommend this book because it proves the equality byforce is wrong because it is not reality. You don’t settle for almost you show the value of the most.