Adventures in the Human Spirit (2nd Edition) - Softcover

From the beginning, I designed Adventures in the Human Spirit, now in its fourth edition, to be an accessible and engaging single-volume survey, inviting its readers to begin a lifelong conversation with the Western humanities. In emphasizing the connections between ideas and cultural creation, the book provides a concise and focused history of the Western arts, religion, philosophy, and science. Its special boxed features provide a set of lenses for students to view the history of culture. Key Concepts define and illustrate essential ideas in historical context, usually with a link to contemporary problems. Global Perspectives point to crucial moments in global civilization that invite comparison with Western cultures. Windows on Daily Life use original documents to portray in vivid detail the lives of ordinary people.

New to the fourth edition. Each chapter now highlights provocative quotations from thinkers and artists of the age. New Key Concepts will support student inquiry on topical issues—"The World Citizen," "Mysticism," "Enlightenment," and "Freedom." A new Global Perspective on "The Ottoman World" extends treatment of Muslim civilization into the early modern world. In response to reviewers' and students' suggestions, I have added new or substantially revised text on such topics as: religion and philosophy in Greece; Greek music and dance; Hellenistic philosophy; the Northern humanist philosophers; dance in the baroque and romantic eras; Adam Smith and Kant's ethical thought; Joshua Reynolds and British neoclassicism; the Industrial Revolution; the Victorians and utilitarianism; Klimt and the Vienna Secession; Einstein's new physics; terror and civilization in the new century. Chapter 5 is renamed the Spirit of Monotheism.

Several chapters are reorganized for clarity and historical coherence in this edition. Chapter 9, Reformation and Late Renaissance, now begins with the religious reforms that overshadowed the sixteenth century. Chapter 13, The Industrial Age, now begins with the Victorians and their utilitarian materialism. Chapter 15, The Contemporary Spirit, ends with a consideration of art as a force for renewal in the face of war and terrorism.

Expanded Teaching and Learning Package

Adventures is accompanied by a supplements package for both students and instructors, and three very exciting new items for students are now available with the fourth edition.

For Students. The new Companion Website at www.prenhall.com/bishop gives students free access to an extensive online study resource, including quizzes, weblinks, chapter objectives, and more. A new Music CD is included for free with each copy of the book. Selections represent a broad variety of time periods and styles, and include such composers as Bach, Berlioz, and Bernstein (see table of contents on inside back page). A new supplement, Humanities Notes, also free, is designed to help students organize their course notes around key illustrations, quotations, and short extracts from each chapter.

For Instructors. Prentice Hall also offers: Instructor's Manual with Test Item File available on the Companion Website, www.prenhall.com/bishop (contact your local Prentice Hall representative for a password) and TestGen, an electronic test generator for both Windows and Macintosh formats.

Philip Bishop
Orlando, Florida, 2004