Europe and the People Without History Second Edition

by Eric R. Wolf (Author), Thomas Hylland Eriksen (Foreword)

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ISBN-13: 978-0520268180

ISBN-10: 0520268180

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Offering insight and equal consideration into the societies of the "civilized" and "uncivilized" world, Europe and the People Without History deftly explores the historical trajectory of so-called modern globalization. In this foundational text about the development of the global political economy, Eric R. Wolf challenges the long-held anthropological notion that non-European cultures and peoples were isolated and static entities before the advent of European colonialism and imperialism. Ironically referred to as "the People Without History" by Wolf, these societies before active colonization possessed perpetually changing, reactionary cultures and were indeed just as intertwined into the processes of the pre-Columbian global economic system as their European counterparts. Utilizing Marxian concepts and a vivid consideration for the importance of history, Wolf judiciously traces the effects and conditions in Europe and the rest of the "known" world, beginning in 1400 AD, that allowed capitalism to emerge as the dominant ideology of the modern era.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The work of a powerful theoretical intelligence, but one informed by a lived sense of social realities." ― Times Literary Supplement

"Wolf's intention is to show that European expansion not only transformed the historical trajectory of non-European societies but also reconstituted their historical accounts of their societies before European intervention. . . . His historical sweep and analytic breadth are astounding, and he gives approximately equal weight to historical 'winners' and 'losers.'" ― American Journal of Sociology

"Wolf's empirical knowledge is exceptionally wide. . . . He relies on a skillful selection of phenomena in time and space that are reasonably representative of the totality. . . . The book is very well written and with a profoundly human touch." ― Ethnos

"Wolf has created a history of connection rather than one of segregation. . . . This absorbing and stimulating book . . . provides a convincing and, dare I say, new perspective. . . . By emphasizing a common past, Wolf moves away from weary polarities of active 'white' centre and passive 'non- white' periphery and suggests both a more complex and a more informed sense of the relationship between Europe and the rest of the world." ― European Update

"In this big and important book, Eric Wolf begins and ends with the assertion that anthropology must pay more attention to history. . . . It is with pleasure, then, that one reads a critical analysis that rejects pseudo- historical oppositions and explores with such care the historical processes by which primitive and peasant pasts have become a fundamentally altered primitive, peasant, and proletarian present." ― Dialectical Anthropology

"Wolf's intention is to explain the development and nature of the chains of cause and consequence which linked populations in the post-1400 world. The outcome is a tightly structured and elegant book." ― Oceania

About the Author

Eric R. Wolf (1923–1999) had an illustrious and influential career as Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at H. Lehman College and the Graduate School of the City University of New York.

Product details

Publisher : University of California Press; Second edition (September 21, 2010)
Language : English
Paperback : 536 pages
ISBN-10 : 0520268180
ISBN-13 : 978-0520268180
Item Weight : 1.6 pounds
Dimensions : 6 x 1.2 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #633,002 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #447 in Slavery & Emancipation History
- #995 in Anthropology (Books)
- #1,512 in European History (Books)

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A book written before its time, that time is now.

Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2020

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I hate highlighting sections of book, but this one has so may amazing points that my highlighter might run out of ink. I've been a historian and anthropologist for nearly 20 years and had never come across this book. My studies have focused on prehistory, and I have never found a book that seamlessly links together post-Rome Europe to the rise of global capitalism. This all-encompassing historical journey makes the theories and cultures I've been reading for years coalesce into a collective narrative that makes sense of all the variable parts. I only wish that Wolf was still alive so that I could interview him today. For anyone wanting a clear view of how civilizations function, and how capitalism took the reigns of the global civilization (and crafted it), this is the book for you.

4 people found this helpful

Excellent resource

Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2015

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Excellent resource. I used this book throughout college for many different classes, and ultimately for my senior's thesis.

5 people found this helpful

Robert J. Crawford

Largely obsolete Marxist historical analysis, but interesting is many respects.

Reviewed in the United States on October 4, 2016

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The goal of this book is to look at the entire world as a system that was changed (from 1400 CE) by global exploration, colonial usurpation, industrialization, and the birth of a free-flowing proletariat for capitalists to employ, i.e. exploit. Wolf, the author, was rebelling against the popular approach of his time, which was to look at the impact of these forces on strictly limited populations, usually with one nation or perhaps a single colonial arrangement, rather than take them as an integrated whole. His methodology, which he sketches out very clearly, is to apply Marxist concepts - modes of production, the labor theory of value, etc. - to do so.

Without doubt, this can be very interesting and enlightening. First, exploration brought the many peoples of the world into closer contact than ever before. This spread disease, with some catastrophic impacts, such as the smallpox plagues that devastated the Americas, killing perhaps 9/10 of the indigenous populations. Second, this opened the way to a vast expansion of slavery, essentially enlarging "tribute economies", whereby land owners would be able to profit from the labor of others as international markets expanded to a global scale with improvements in shipping and the like. Though zero-sum in its essence, it preserved many traditional structures that guaranteed peasants and slaves certain rights to home, food, and other aspects of care from seignieurs or masters. Third, as England industrialized, the possibility of capitalism emerged, whereby technology was applied into much larger organizations and workers were employed as disposable commodity inputs while transportation costs continued to fall. This eventually became the dominant economic paradigm. Throughout all of this, traditional structures had to evolve or face annihilation.

This is a very nice nutshell, something intellectuals can use to demonstrate their grasp of the global economy. Unfortunately, I see many problems with the approach, which is a bit too clean. Perhaps most importantly, in his distaste for free enterprise, Wolf consistently underestimates the dynamism of capitalism: the captains of industry must reinvest their profits if they wish to survive, i.e. they must be ready to cannibalize their business or fade into obsolescence and bankruptcy. Moreover, Wolf completely fails to distinguish between different kinds of capitalism: the US, China, Taiwan, Japan, and Germany operate very differently and with wide variations in their results - it is a function of their cultures and history, which undermines the central thesis of the book. Instead, he just seems to look at them as monolithic machines of exploitation, which is simplistic to say the least. Finally, he does not even mention the way that capitalism, coupled with the application of chemical energy, have helped to raise living standards as well as personal freedoms to unprecedented heights. You do not have to be a conservative to see this.

As a reading experience, this book is also badly lacking. There are long theoretical sections that are worth a careful read, but they are abstruse and extremely dull, often incomprehensible. Wolf was an anthropologist, so he focuses to an inordinate extent on hierarchies, institutional forms, etc. As the book dates from the early 1980s, many of the ideas are obsolete or not new. As the collapse of the USSR and the transformation of China attest, Marxist economics are not nearly as successful as free enterprise; yet the book was written before these developments.

Of course, there are many sections that I genuinely enjoyed, such as the descriptions of how Amer-Indians adapted, how slavery was an integral contributor to the early stages of industrialization and capitalism, and how an urban proletariat emerged from a rural peasantry. These ideas are important and should be reviewed, even if only to disagree with them.

Recommended with these caveats. I will return to this book as a reference but never re-read it for pleasure.

10 people found this helpful

Eric Wolf’s work is a great breakdown and analysis of the rise of colonial Europe ...

Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2014

Eric Wolf’s work is a great breakdown and analysis of the rise of colonial Europe and the resulting modern world we have today. Wolf thoroughly explains the backgrounds of each major cultural group and their movements and motivations throughout history. The setting for the book starts off by explaining the major groups of the world into the 1400s. Wolf uses this background to set a framework, illustrating that the European powers at the start of the 1400s did not stand out as having more power or control. Instead the overly fragmented nature would stand out to an observer, making the prospect of the ‘west’ soon to be controlling the world as far off. This chapter titled ‘the world in 1400’ I personally believe is the most revealing to the average reader. Wolf in this chapter uses the concept of an observer being able to see different civilizations and regions all in 1400. It is very true that such an experience would certainly lead the observer to have a very different future in mind than the one of the rapid expansion of the European powers. As shown during the beginning of the 1400s there were several powers including the Ottomans that would have seemed better placed for global control. However, Wolf thoroughly explains that the fragmented, geographic, and resulting mercantile focus is what led to European global expansion.
The specific historical circumstances and geographic location Wolf argues were the catalysts to the rise of the European powers. He argues that the Ottomans and other powers in the east forced the European rulers to focus their efforts on westward expansion. Apart from the power superiority in the east the divided fragmented nature of the European world ultimately also aided expansion. The power vacuum in Europe during this period made for constant warring and plotting by different rulers and ‘states.’ This led to increase in mercantile pursuits that were first seen by the merchant republics of Italy. Constant warring and vying for power allowed for these merchants to prosper greatly. Demand for resources in different areas quickly increased the exchange and volume of traded goods. With this increase in trade and commerce came a constant increase in innovation and efficiency, in both the allocation of resources and in their production. During this time an increase in technology also allowed for more productive travel, which in turn resulted in an even greater increase in trade. Ultimately this mercantile background in Europe and the Ottoman power gap in the east is what made for Explorers like Columbus to set commerce minded expeditions across the Atlantic. Wolf then covers the effects of this rise on native populations and the resulting lead to Capitalism.
The discovery of new vegetables and resources in the new world led to rapidly increases in overall demand. This huge explosion of demand quickly became unsustainable further jeopardizing the well being of local native populations. Exotic luxury items and resources were heavily demanded by Europeans, whom quickly became dependent on such goods, further increasing their demand. Slavery and different forms of indentured servitude also took off during this period. Greatly impacting the demographics of local populations and dispersing other groups. While the native populations had already greatly suffered from disease and early explorers, the demand for production depleted local numbers to an even greater extent. As mentioned by Wolf, entire populations of natives seized to exist while the vast majorities were relocated to lands they were not familiar with. At the same time new demographics in the south of America were created, by being the first region to have a self-replicating slave population. Apart from the toll on local people and slave labor, it was during this time that the European powers quickly moved towards what is currently identified as capitalism. While the demand for a constant increase in production and profit was extremely detrimental to local groups, it is clear that this demand of production resulted in constant innovation allowing for the rapid advances seen by ‘western’ society. Colonial interests coupled with the focus on production and trade created an economic and technological gap between Europe and the rest of the world that is only starting to be balanced today. This rise is what resulted in the modern concept of anthropology, thus to understand anthropology it is vital to understand it’s historical background.
I believe Eric Wolf’s work to be a tremendous historical background and framework for both anthropology and for history. I would highly recommend this book not only to students of anthropology but of many other disciplines as well. From history to economics Europe and The People without History is a fascinating informative read. The important questions of why the ‘west’ became the west, and the factors that made it so seem to be asked less and less. Instead society seems to gloss over history and think that the european powers were always in some way superior, and thus destined to colonize the new world first. Wolf’s work does a perfect job of explaining the the reality of european expansion and why mechanisms such as capitalism resulted. It is very important to be able to understand that our modern society is just one culture and that does not necessarily mean it is the best one. Instead it is vital to know that things are as they are for very specific historic/geographic reasons. Had certain cultures not boomed or busted when than they did then it could have been the Chinese sailing to the New World or even the West Africans before Europe. History is certainly in the past, but understanding the background behind modern society helps a person understand why we have our mindset. To understand anthropology one must understand the biases and background behind our modern perspective, Wolf’s book does a terrific job of doing this and I recommended it to everyone interested in the field.

8 people found this helpful

Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2019

Great, even stunning, overview of world development since 1400. Discusses various modes of production from kin-based to tributary to capitalist. Critical of anthropology even though author is an anthropologist. Shame it's out of print. Deserves more attention.

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ch

Best buy in ages

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 30, 2020

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It's hard work, a brilliantly written academic text, but worth the effort. It's given me, a historian, a totally different perspective on what I thought I knew

One person found this helpful

Dirk Seifert

Grosse Zusammenhänge

Reviewed in Germany on November 1, 2011

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Wer sich nicht in historischen Details verlieren sondern die grossen Zusammenhänge der Entwicklung bis in unsere heutige Zeit erkennen will, der wird dieses Buch sehr schätzen. Schön wenn es eine solche Untersuchung auch für das 20./21. JH geben würde. Weiter Empfehlungen sind die Werke von Eric Hobsbawm.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 4, 2015

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wonderful

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