Great in Some Areas but Lacking in Others

This was an odd course to say the least. The poor reviews left me hesitant to purchase this course for years but when I did I found the beginning half of the course to be very interesting and engaging. Sure the professor focused mostly on high political life and the ruling class but for that component I thought it was a well executed discussion. I couldn't tell from where all these negative reviews originated.

But as the course dragged on it was getting more and more difficult to ignore his tendency to overuse filler words (uhhh, ummm) in his struggles to find the right words which became very distracting and when he got to modern day history of China I thought his treatment of the Communist party was mind boggling. He glossed over the atrocities that the Communists (especially Mao Zedong) carried out on their own citizens. Regardless of your perspective (some professors will justify them while others will harp on them ad nauseum) these events form a huge part of the history of 20th century China so for them to not even be discussed in any context is bizarre.

I have to say more on his presentation style tendency to use filler words. This came out most often when he was struggling to find the right word or two to wrap up a thought when in reality any additional words added no value to the message anyway so the delayed completion was painful many times (“We already know what you mean so just stop killing us with the “uhhhh” as you search for the final words!”). I can see this presentation being a million times better if he just read off of a script!

Another warning: there is very little information on Chinese culture or social life. Other than lectures on Confucianism, Buddhism, Neo-Confucianism, and art in the 11th and 12th centuries there was very little attention outside the political history of China. How was everyday life was for everyday citizens?

The major imperil dynasties listed below are covered in-depth:
o Xia
o Shang
o Zhou
o Qin
o Han
o Jin
o Sui
o Tang
o Song
o Yuan
o Ming
o Qing


My personal highlights included lectures 2 (the first dynasties of China: the Xia and Shang) and 33-34 (conflict between the Nationalist and Communist parties in the 20th century).

If you're interested in political high life involving the rise and fall of dynasties and court life then this course delivers. If you're looking for a full account of Chinese history (social life and culture) that is balanced in how it handles controversial decisions then stay away and instead pick up "The Foundations of Eastern Civilization".

54 people found this helpful

"Only powerful people have liberty." Sun Yat-sen

History of China
1. Geography and Archaeology
2. The First Dynasties
3. The Zhou Conquest
4. Fragmentation and Social Change
5. Confucianism and Daoism
6. The Hundred Schools
7. The Early Han Dynasty
8. Later Han and the Three Kingdoms
9. Buddhism
10. Northern and Southern Dynasties
11. Sui Reunification and the Rise of the Tang
12. The Early Tang Dynasty
13. Han Yu and the Late Tang
14. Five Dynasties and the Song Founding
15. Intellectual Ferment in the 11th Century
16. Art and the Way
17. Conquest States in the North
18. Economy and Society in Southern Song
19. Zhu Xi and Neo-Confucianism
20. The Rise of the Mongols
21. The Yuan Dynasty
22. The Rise of the Ming
23. The Ming Golden Age
24. Gridlock and Crisis
25. The Rise of the Manchus
26. Kangxi to Qianlong
27. The Coming of the West
28. Threats from Within and Without
29. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom
30. Efforts at Reform
31. The Fall of the Empire
32. The New Culture Movement and May 4th
33. The Chinese Communists, 1921-1937
34. War and Revolution
35. China Under Mao
36. China and the World in a New Century

“In the construction of a country, it is not the practical workers but the idealists and planners that are difficult to find.” Sun Yat-sen

I really enjoyed this Great Course. Professor Kenneth J. Hammond from New Mexico State makes this 5,000 year history of China come alive.

It helped me to begin to understand the difference in cultures between the western world and the east. It also helped me to see that because I was brought up in a democracy/republic that all nations may not want that kind of government.

I was surprised to learn that under Communism women had more rights than they had previously and as capitalism grabs hold of China, women’s rights are disappearing. I also found it interesting to learn why the students were protesting in Tiananmen Square and the eventual outcome of that protest.

I also found intriguing the family dynasties that ruled China over the years and the Mongols taking control under the Khans when Marco Polo visited. I was disgusted to find Great Britain as the biggest drug cartel in history and how they pushed opium on the Chinese people in order to have an advantage in trading in silver with them.

In America we learn little of Chinese history and these classes are about thirty minutes in length which is perfect for a little at a time. This took me a long time to finish but I feel I have a better understanding of the Chinese people and history thanks to Prof. Hammond.

69 people found this helpful

Good broad brush information

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

The professors speach candence was too slow for me. I had to play the entire thing on 2x speed for it to be tolerable.

Any additional comments?

Great information overall with some solid broad brush coverage of the subject. I would have liked to have gotten more details in a number of places, but that would have made it too long.

15 people found this helpful

Informative but dry and incomplete

The teacher belongs to the "one damn thing after another" school of history--lots of facts, very little effort to hold them together with theories or draw any interesting lessons out of them. Few comparisons with other cultures, little discussion of competing interpretations of events, etc. If I hadn't done outside reading, for instance, I'd have no idea that the existence of the Xia dynasty is still controversial--the teacher presents it as established fact.

Once Communism enters the scene, the story gets deceptively rosy. The Cultural Revolution is presented as mostly an internal party fight--the millions of casualties aren't mentioned. Casualties from the collectivization famine are mentioned, but they're presented as, "Collectivization led to increased food production, but they thought they had even more food than they really had, so they stopped rationing and--it was the darndest thing!--ten million people starved to death. Totally by accident. Nobody responsible here."

He presents China's accomplishments since Tiananmen in glowing terms, then says, "But they've come at a cost." My ears perk up, hoping for honest analysis. He continues, "Teachers' salaries haven't kept up with the rising standard of living, and health care is kind of expensive." Everything else, I guess, is peachy. He mentions government population control efforts, but he can't even bring himself to say the words "one-child policy," to say nothing of "forced abortions and sterilizations."

I get there are things it's dangerous to say if you're a scholar who wants to keep working in China. But if you can't talk about post-1960s China without becoming a party shill, it's best to say nothing at all.

41 people found this helpful

It's ok

This included a lot of information and introduced me to Chinese history, but it was very short on details and in many cases provided summaries that were too vague. It was more detailed once it reached Communist China. I feel like this book is an introductory introduction and there is a better option available on Audible from the Great Courses.

10 people found this helpful

A good listen

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes because it is a great crash course to Chinese history and seems to cover all of the main events.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Professor Kenneth J. Hammond?

That depends on the subject. He wasn't a particularly great story teller and didn't really make the subject come to life. I was interested in most of the lectures so I could pay attention, but occasionally he would dwell on some less interesting topics and I would lose interest.

Any additional comments?

I certainly enjoyed the audiobook but it was not one I could listen to for hours at a time because the Professor was not very energized. I was also disappointed that he did not talk about the building of the Great Wall at all. However, it was a great introduction/overview of Chinese History.

20 people found this helpful

Shockingly Incomplete

I listened to the course to try to understand better China and it's role on the world stage. I was looking forward to the final few lectures to gain understanding on the situations with Tibet, Taiwan, Hong Kong, international trade, etc. i was shocked to find that these lectures were written like PRC propaganda. There is no mention of Tibet or Hong Kong, Taiwan is not mentioned after 1949. The Tiananmen Square massacre is downplayed to an alarming extent. I could go on about human rights issues, religious suppression, the One Child Policy. The degree to which Kenneth J. Hammond ignores and chages details makes me question the entirety of the course. Disappointed does not begin to cover it.

8 people found this helpful

Good overview, missing important elements

Of three courses on China, this is the best overview, but it has no perspective. In other words, it does not provide insights into the motivations and the consequences, which the other courses did very well. Killing of 20 million people or so is passed over, as well as matricide, patricide and other acts of cruelty. It focuses on the leaders, with some good references to cultural leaders. BUT -Why did the leaders do what they did? What about the others?
Dr. Ted Baehr

7 people found this helpful

Broad Overview of China's history

For someone living and working in China, this course was interesting and informative. It gives only a broad overview of China's history and is really a starting point for those interested in China's history. The professor presented the lectures well, and held my attention.

7 people found this helpful

Very informative course about China

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, definitely, China being important on world stage, it is important to know where they come from and this book does a very good job explaining it. For instance why Chinese dislike foreigners because they were abused many times by them particularly the neighbors and the western powers. At least according to the book.

What did you like best about this story?

The chronological length: 5000 years of history in 18h. It is genial to capture the most important events. It was good for me to know that chairman Mao had a lot of challenges to get thing under control. We have been told that he could do what he wished that sound not to be the case.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

There was not much to laugh about but a lot to cry about.

Any additional comments?

The Professor is a great story teller but did not like the long pause he did sometime. At the beginning I thought something was wrong with my system. I then realized that they are just part of the audio. I would love to listen to any other audio book he has. Great job.

3 people found this helpful