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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
102 of 110 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good political narrative of the Ottoman Empire,
By
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This review is from: Osman's Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire (Hardcover)
Though more people today associate the word "ottoman" with fancy cushioned footstools than with a mighty regime, the Ottoman Empire dominated much of southeastern Europe and the Middle East from the fifteenth century to the end of the First World War. In many respects it was the last of the great Muslim empires which challenged Christian Europe, while its' lengthy decline concerned generations of Western statesman and its successor states still demand the world's attention.
In this book, Caroline Finkel offers us a single-volume history of the Ottoman Empire, ranging from its obscure origins to its demise in the 1920s. Though similar overviews have been written before, her goal is to dispel the traditional "rise and fall" approach and to free the empire from its' stereotyping as, in her words, "a theatre of the absurd." Tapping into the enormous wealth of recent scholarly work on the Ottomans, she offers a far more complex and nuanced portrayal of the empire than in most popular accounts - pointing out, for example, that the ranks of the soldiers of the early empire included as many Christians as it did Muslims, and that it was not until well into the empire's decline in the 18th century that the Ottoman sultans began to embrace the previously disused title of caliph. Yet the book suffers from a relatively narrow focus. Most of the text is dominated by a narrative of high politics, one concentrating on the machinations and maneuvering of the sultans; other elements, such as the complex social and economic structures of the empire, are addressed only in passing. Moreover, Finkel rarely explains the empire in any depth. Key institutions such as the janissaries are mentioned and their political role is covered, but the reasons for their existence and maintenance are rarely analyzed in detail. The result is that while readers are informed of the "who" "what" and "when" of Ottoman history, the "how" and the "why" often are left unaddressed. Nonetheless, Finkel has provided an accessible overview of the Ottoman Empire, one largely free from the Eurocentric stereotyping all too typical of many earlier histories of the subject. While the text is often dense with details, the narrative itself is straightforward and a useful set of maps are provided to help readers master the intricacies of the human geography of the period. This book is likely to serve as the standard work on the empire for many years to come, though one that should be supplemented by more explanatory texts.
40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Solid,
By
This review is from: Osman's Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire (Hardcover)
This is a decent survey of Ottoman history. In many ways, this is traditional history from above, mainly a political history concentrating on the ups and downs of the reigns of the Ottoman Sultans. Finkel does well in constructing the basic narrative, covering centuries of Ottoman history in solid prose. The complicated dynastic politics of several periods are covered well. Finkel makes a less successful attempt to integrate social and economic history. She describes different phases of social and demographic history in the Empire as related to the political history but rarely provides enough detail to be satisfactory. For example, she mentions the declining Muslim population of the 19th century empire but never describes the size of the population or whether this was an absolute or relative decline. In many sections, she devotes more text to architectural history than relevant economic or social history. This book is largely descriptive and useful on that basis. As a basic political history, it will probably be useful for many, but its analytic shortcomings make its utility limited.
50 of 54 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A book worth waiting for,
By Andrew Wheatcroft (Stirling, Scotland UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Osman's Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire (Hardcover)
In the last few years there has been many good new studies on the Ottoman Empire. But none has been a history of the Ottomans from start to finish, based on a wide range of sources, but also a flowing narrative, not a textbook. Now with Osman's Dream we have a narrative history that will be hard to surpass.
The only other book that comes close in its readability is Lord Kinross's classic, written in the 1970s. But that was an old-style study, based on ancient legends and old prejudices. Caroline Finkel's book comes from deep knowledge of the Ottoman sources, and for the first time, the long story rings true. Few empires were more complex and more opaque to the outsider than the Ottoman world. Finkel understands it and she never lets her own opinions get in the way of opening up that world to the reader. She draws together this long history in a manner that disentangles its complexities, brings its individuals to life, and connects the Ottoman past to the Turkish present. Even with well known episodes, she manages to add something new, often through the deft use of Ottoman sources in a sprightly translation. It is a huge book, but for this reader, never seemed overlong. There is often one book that will outlast all the others on any given subject, and will define the topic for a generation. Finkel already has a reputation in her academic area of Ottoman studies. The truly remarkable aspect of Osman's Dream is that it is good not just on her speciality, but all the way through, from the 14th to the 20th century. A magnicent achievement.
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