History of Asia, A (5th Edition) [Paperback]

Rhoads Murphey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 13, 2005 | ISBN-10: 032134054X | ISBN-13: 978-0321340542 | Edition: 5

Written by a leading scholar, A History of Asia is the only text to cover the area known as Monsoon Asia — India, China, Southeast Asia, Korea, and Japan — from the earliest of times to the present. Its extensive analysis integrates the complex and diverse political, social, intellectual, and economic histories of this area with an engaging and lively style. Popular because of its scope and coverage, the fifth edition of A History of Asia contains new, boxed features that emphasize cross-cultural comparisons and expanded treatment of Southeast Asia. Additionally, a timeline and discussion questions have been added to each chapter, thereby making the book even more student friendly.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Rhoads Murphey is a Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Michigan. Professor Murphey completed his doctorate in Far Eastern History and Geography (joint degree) at Harvard University in 1950 and joined the faculty of the University of Michigan in 1964. He specializes in modern Chinese history, the history of agriculture in Asia, modern Indian history, and geography. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: Longman; 5 edition (August 13, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 032134054X
• ISBN-13: 978-0321340542
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 7.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #656,444 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great scholarly introduction to the history of Asia, July 30, 2006

By 

Nicholas M (New York, N.Y.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: History of Asia, A (5th Edition) (Paperback)

I read this textbook in a junior-level undergraduate course on the history of Asia. Rhoads Murphey's text certainly has a tall task in covering 4,000 years of history in severally culturally distinct regions in Asia, but I thought he succeeded.

Another reviewer has pointed out that Murphey does a very good job of focusing on themes and meaningful interpretation of historical trends. I agree, and would further point out that this interpretation is not overdone -- the author doesn't resort to distilling complicated histories into linear progressions or other simplistic constructions.

At times, I was a bit frustrated with the book's organization (chapters cover one or two civilizations, e.g. Japan and Korea, in a general time period), because it was sometimes difficult to pin down a basic chronology of a particular region/culture, but this frustration may have been a result of the format of the course for which I was reading this book. And in fairness, the book does provide convenient charts towards the beginning of each chapter listing major events and their dates.

Finally, one of the more widely-read reviews on this page criticized Prof. Murphey's treatment of Islam. When the topic came up, it seemed to me that Islam's historical and cultural influence was treated in an accurate, honest, and fair way.

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Well organized and interesting, April 15, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: A History of Asia (3rd Edition) (Paperback)

I'm using this textbook for an asian studies class I'm taking. I find this book to be very well organized and informative and interesting. As a matter of fact, I've already finished the book even though only one quarter of the term has passed. The only problem I have with this book is that the author comments on the history a little too much instead of allowing the readers to make their own judgment. For example, he makes an outrageous suggestion that South Koreans would have been better off if the Korean War had not been fought after North Korea invaded. In addition, the author doesn't often present a balanced view on Asian history. He forcefully condemns western colonialism (fair enough), but then never criticizes, for example, China for being imperialistic towards its neighbors. He often criticizes westerners for being "arrogant," but rarely criticizes Chinese for being arrogant, and they did have a very arrogant attitude towards "outsiders" throughout their history, including all their Asian neighbors. He says, "It should be remembered, however, that Korea has the same geographic size and population, with a far older, more sophisticated culture. . . " Really? Older and more sophisticated than Greece, Italy, France, etc.? What is he basing his information on? "Equally old and sophisticated culture. . ." would be a much more accurate assessment. Still, this book is interesting and I recommend it.

14 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's a Textbook, June 5, 2001

By 

Kevin L. Nenstiel "omnivore" (Kearney, Nebraska) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A History of Asia (3rd Edition) (Paperback)

Let's not forget this fact: this is a college textbook. If you're looking for something that will be interesting reading or will keep you entertained when the television is off, you don't want this book. You will be overwhelmed by rafts of facts and will not be able to digest it all. Find another book.

That said, this book is very good if you're interested in a thorough, exhaustive history of Asia. Murphey focusses on themes and meaning rather than lists of names and dates. Memorisation and quotation of established facts are not the order of the day. Probably an ideal introductory history of Monsoon Asia, this book makes a good gateway to further in-depth study of the area.

That said, it's not a perfect book. Some broad claims are made about the region, such as the claim that Asian societies are older and possess greater sophistication. This is inaccurate -- after all, Egyptian civilization is two thousand years older, and the Fertile Crescent civilization is one thousand years older, than the civilizations of China and the Indus River valley. True, China was at one time the most powerful and sophisticated on Earth, but it is no longer, because it placed greater value on social stability than on development and growth. These claims are surely brash and possibly offensive to those who have struggled to make other civilizations advance beyond a crude level.

Barring that sort of thing, however, this book is a good scholastic introduction to the history of Monsoon Asia. It will bore casual readers, keep that in mind. However, if you are interested in an in-depth study of the themes that continue to color Asia, this is your book.