Germs, Seeds and Animals: Studies in Ecological History: Studies in Ecological History (Sources and Studies in World History)

Alfred Crosby almost alone redirected the attention of historians to ecological issues that were important precisely because they were global. In doing so, he answered those who believed that world history had become impossible as a consequence of the post-war proliferation of new historical specialities, including not only ecological history but also new social histories, areas studies, histories of mentalities and popular cultures, and studies of minorities, majorities, and ethnic groups. In the introduction to this volume, Professor Crosby recounts an intellectual path to ecological history that might stand as a rationale for world history in general. He simply decided to study the most pervasive and important aspects of human experience. By focusing on human universals like death and disease, his studies highlight the epidemic rather than the epiphenomenal. The Columbian Voyages, The Columbian Exchange, And Their Historians -- Ecological Imperialism: The Overseas Migration Of Western Europeans As A Biological Phenomenon -- The Biological Metamorphosis Of The Americas -- The British Empire As A Product Of Continental Drift -- Infectious Disease And The Demography Of The Atlantic Peoples -- Virgin Soil Epidemics As A Factor In The Aboriginal Depopulation Of America -- God ... Would Destroy Them, And Give Their Country To Another People ... -- Hawaiian Depopulation As A Model For The Amerindian Experience -- The Demographic Effect Of American Crops In Europe -- Demography, Maize, Land, And The American Character -- Reassessing 1492 -- Life (with All Its Problems) In Space. Alfred W. Crosby. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.