Virtual History: Alternatives and Counterfactuals by Niall Ferguson - Paperback

Ferguson emphatically underscores the point that counterfactual historical speculation can be an enlightening enterprise. Very important and useful contribution to the the debate in today's context of political movements veering off to the right across the globe. Ferguson's "Afterword: A Virtual History" is something that stays with you much after you have shut the book. In this essay, he attempts to synthesize elements of each of the previous essays into an account of the last three hundred fifty years that increasingly departs from the history we know, leading to a world in which an increasingly besieged Anglo-American is challenged and subdued by the rising power of a Germany-led EU and the menacing beliigerence of Putin's Russia. In his view, and rightly so, today's dominant ideological crosscurrents are nationalism and religion having overpowered or, if you so like, sidelined, Communism and even democracy.

Niall Ferguson ist ein fundierter intelligenter geistreicher Historiker. Sein Ansatz ist interessant and hilft sich auszumalen "Was gewesen wäre, wenn..." Sehr empfehlenswert!

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 it is intended to explain and defend the value of counterfactual history. Feguson makes perhaps the finest explanation and defense of counterfactual reasoning. This will obviously not make some people happy, as they would rather hear creative historical what ifs, ala Hollywood. But for historians and other social scientists who need to use counterfactual reasoning, this book is an outstanding resource. By all means read this book, and the other fine works of Niall Ferguson - one of the outstanding comparative historians of our day (or any day).

A collection of essays considering the "what ifs" of history -- what if there had been no (sucessful) American Revolution, what if Hitler's Germany had defeated Russia, what if John Kennedy had not been assassinated, and so on. The orientation, not surprisingly in a book edited by Niall Ferguson, is heavily Anglo-American, which is something of a limitation. Moreover, the style is not in general compelling, which can make this a slow read. Nonetheless, these are serious essays by serious historians, who regard "counterfactualism" as a way of better understanding what actually did happen. Some other serious historians regard it as a waste of time. I find the thought exercise iinteresting, however. Moreover, counterfactualism can help examine widely held assumptions that may not be true (John Kennedy as an American hero, for example). And thinking about that underlines that what people think happened often matters much more than what really did happen.

Bought this as a gift for a friend who is a history buff and he loves it. Great book.