Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals (Paperback)

~ Niall Ferguson (Editor) "Between 1638 and 1640, when not distracted by fiscal crises and Scottish wars, Charles I turned his attention to a more congenial task: the plans..." (more)
Key Phrases: royal victory, counterfactual questions, counterfactual arguments, Home Rule, United States, Soviet Union (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This meaty, scholarly collection of essays by gifted historian Niall Ferguson tackles the controversial topic of counterfactual questions: What if Hitler had invaded Britain in WWII? What if JFK had survived his assassination? What if there had been no Gorbachev to usher in the collapse of Communism? What if there had been no American Revolution? Ferguson points out that while questions such as these are a vital part of how we learn as individuals ("What if I had observed the speed limit, or refused that last drink?"), there remains a great deal of resistance--even hostility--to such musings among professional historians. "[I]n the dismissive phrase of E.H. Carr, 'counterfactual' history is a mere 'parlour game,' a 'red herring.'" E.P. Thompson is less charitable, calling counterfactual histories "'Geschichtswissenschlopff', unhistorical shit."

But Ferguson and his distinguished collaborators (many of whom are also Oxford fellows) lodge some convincing counterfactuals of their own to counter this arguably blinkered notion, this "idea that events are in some way preprogrammed, so that what was, had to be." In addition to the what-ifs above, Ferguson and his comrades tackle eight questions in all, including "What if Charles I had avoided the Civil War?", "What if Home Rule had been enacted [in Ireland] in 1912?", and "What if Britain had 'stood aside' in August 1914?" Virtual History makes for a stimulating and intellectually rigorous trip, with Ferguson's own delightful afterword as the collection's crowning jewel, a brilliant--and often bitingly clever--timeline tying together all the threads from 1646 to 1996. --Paul Hughes --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"[Niall Ferguson is] the most talked-about British historian of his generation." -- Alan Riding, The New York Times

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Product Details

• Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books; New edition edition (August 21, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465023231
• ISBN-13: 978-0465023233
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #102,842 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

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26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting intellectual exercise, November 24, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals (Paperback)

What if?

People have been speculating about the consequences of "the path not taken" for centuries, but alternative history -- that is, the consideration, serious or otherwise, of the paths that history would have taken if a single event had gone differently -- has only come into its own in the 20th century. Beginning in the 1930's, with the publication of Squire's _What If?_, there have been numerous publications related to alternative history. Numerous authors have published fiction based on alternative histories -- though most of them could have been better written, they are valuable contributions to the alternative history canon.

Recently, alternative history scenarios -- now known as counterfactuals -- have become intellectually respectable, as historians, social scientists, and economists have used them to analyze how our society developed. It is in this light that _Virtual History : Alternatives and Counterfactuals_ was written.

The various scenarios in the book are all interesting, and based in fact. Of particular interest are the scenarios detailing the effects of:

* the survival of the Stuart monarchy in the British Isles;

* the failure of the British to intervene on behalf of the French in the First World War, written by Ferguson;

* the fate of Britain, and of eastern Europe, in the event of Nazi victory in the Second World War;

* and, the evolution of the Soviet Union if Gorbachev and _perestroika_ hadn't intervened.

Finally, a composite history of the world including elements from all nine alternative histories proposed in this book is added on, again written by Ferguson.

On the whole, this book is an essential possession for anyone interested in the question of "What if?". My only problems with the book are the facts that Ferguson's composite alternative history evolves into a ridiculously unlikely parody of our history, and that parts of his introduction are overly pompous.

Still, this is an excellent book.

52 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars What Is This Book Trying To Be?, January 18, 2002

By	doomsdayer520 (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

Believe me, I really tried to appreciate this book as either a thought-provoking exploration of scenarios of alternate history, or as a solid study of the art of history itself. I was disappointed both ways. Strangely enough, this book is purported by the publisher and editor to be both of those things, but the results prove otherwise. This book is very unfocused and academically arrogant, and it barely even explores counterfactual history, except at an extremely basic and dry interpretation of the term. Note: This book is from England and is quite Anglo-centric, so a working knowledge of British history might be an asset before you begin (this is not a criticism, just a recommendation).

This book gets off to a horrendous start with Ferguson's 90-page introduction in which he attempts to explore the nuances and importance of counterfactual history. Instead he delivers an extremely tedious and repetitive treatise on the study of history itself, which has little to do with the supposed focus of the book. A large portion of this intro is dedicated to "determinism" vs. "predestination" in history, but this is historiography rather than an exploration of counterfactuals. This is also written in that dry and verbose academic style in which it is more important to endlessly pile on repetitive evidence in order to impress one's colleagues, than to actually enlighten the reader. Ferguson shows a sheer desperation to confound other historians who don't think highly of counterfactuals, and in the process forgets that he is writing a book for the public. He also complains about researchers in his field not being taken seriously, but then insults people in other fields who are interested in counterfactuals, such as sociologists and fiction writers.

After this tedious start, the book doesn't get much better, as various historians contribute chapters on key episodes in history. With only a few exceptions, each author commits the errors of the introduction by failing to explore counterfactuals, which is supposed to be the point, and merely shows off his own historical knowledge in tedious ways. One noteworthy exception is the essay on home rule in Northern Ireland. Otherwise, the pattern here is to spend 95% of the essay describing what really happened in a straight historical fashion, then briefly knock off a few possible alternative scenarios without really exploring them, as if the editor forced each author to do this. In the end, this book can't figure out what it wants to be, and you will be unable to figure out why you're reading it. Is it trying to comment on the study of history itself, or present straight history with an intellectual twist, or explore counterfactuals? It tries to do all of these, with disappointing levels of success, and is only unfocused as a result. If you decide to tackle this, good luck - you'll need it.

24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Historical Research, January 23, 2001

By	J. N. Mohlman (Barrington, RI USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (VINE VOICE)

Overall, I found "Virtual History" to be an excellent exploration of the value of counterfactuals in historical writing. There is no debating the quality of the writing in this book. From the rousing introduction, to the various essays, and the clever conclusion, the authors do a superb job of engaging the reader in their various areas of expertise. That said, the work overall is somewhat uneven.

I believe this stems from the fact that the various historians don't all share the same comfort level with projecting the consequences of their counterfactuals. Some barely scratch the surface of what might have been, while others go into extensive detail (in particular, "What if Hitler had Invaded England", my favorite). However, this complaint speaks more to the flow of the work overall, and not to the quality of each essay.

In conclusion, "Virtual History" is an outstanding work, that shows top notch research and excellent writing. My one caveat to the potential reader would be that this is not a particularly light, easy reading book. If you are looking for a somewhat less rigorous, less scholarly look at counterfactual history I would recommend "What If?" (Cowley ed.).