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Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals
from: Basic Books
List Price: $22.95Our Price: $15.61 You Save: $7.34 (32%)Prices subject to change.
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 355
EAN: 9780465023233
ISBN: 0465023231
Label: Basic Books
Manufacturer: Basic Books
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 560
Publication Date: August 21, 2000
Publisher: Basic Books
Studio: Basic Books
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Editorial 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
What if there had been no American War of Independence? What if Hitler had invaded Britain? What if Kennedy had lived? What if Russia had won the Cold War? Niall Ferguson, author of the highly acclaimed The Pity of War, leads the charge in this historically rigorous series of separate voyages into “imaginary time” and provides far-reaching answers to these intriguing questions.Ferguson’s brilliant 90-page introduction doubles as a manifesto on the methodology of counter-factual history. His equally masterful afterword traces the likely historical ripples that would have proceeded from the maintenance of Stuart rule in England. This breathtaking narrative gives us a convincing, detailed “alternative history” of the West—from the accession of “James III” in 1701, to a Nazi-occupied England, to a U.S. Prime Minister Kennedy who lives to complete his term.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Excellent discussion of the value of and approach to counterfactuals
Niall Ferguson has written several fine books that are must-reads for educated people. These include 'The Pity of War' (on WWI), 'The War of the World' (about the major conflicts in the 20th century including a stunning chapter on the 'armed slave labor camp' that was the Soviet Union), and this book -- Virtual History' on counterfactual or "what if" history. Some amazon reviewers have obviously completely misunderstood this book - it is designed to explore some counterfactual questions, but primarily ... Read More
Rating:  - Only once please
If someone had to do a book like this it is good that it was Niall Ferguson, one of the most thoughtful and interesting of all modern historians. The human mind has a right to play, and this kind of thought is , as I feel it, more in the realm of play than of real history.
'History' is after all 'what has happened', and while 'what might of happened' can possibly illuminate what has happened, my sense is that 'what has happened' is so often problematic and questionable as to provide historians enough ... Read More
Rating: - The Most Seminal Philosophical Work on History in 20 Years!
All students and scholars of history should not consider themselves properly versed in the philosophy of history until they have read through this book's introduction a few times!
Rating: - Counter knee jerk negativity - or why I'm buying this book
Clearly the negative reviews of this book indicate that it's message is going to be difficult, mind ripping and beyond the capability of history addicts. Just as books by David Irving are extremely difficult to even consider, because they tend to go against the momentum of some seventy years of non-stop agiprop by the gereontocrat historians who like Gilbert and Schlesinger just spout the party line of the moment, and that party line that is best suited to career advancement.
I am going to read this and ... Read More
Rating: - Worth reading
"Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals" is a collection of thought-provoking essays, edited by historian Niall Ferguson, that explore a number of 'what if?' scenarios such as:
*What if Charles I had avoided the civil war?
*What if there had been no American Revolution?
*What if Britain had stood aside in August 1914?
*What if Germany had invaded Britain in May 1940?
*What if communism had not collapsed?
As previous reviewers have noted, this book is fairly ... Read More
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