"The History Book"

Paper Summary:

The paper explains that "The History Book" begins during the end of the Middle Ages and extends its narrative up to World War II and the post-colonial aftermath. The paper portrays how cartoons provide a fresh and vivid way of looking at history. The paper is of the opinion that "The History Book" provides a satisfying companion to more conventional views of history, although it remains lacking in terms of offering a clear program to remedy the historical ills that it highlights.

From the Paper:

"The narrator of the film is a rat, a perfect choice of a storyteller, given that this allows the viewer to see history from the perspective of the lowest of the low, from the point of view of a creature that must scrounge for food rather than a person who could possibly profit from the economic system of any particular point in historical time. The films shows how modern history has made several major paradigmatic shifts, beginning with feudalism to mercantilism, then to a mix of capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism, and finally to the modern capitalism, socialism, or communism of the late 20th century."

Sample of Sources Used:

• "The African Slave Trade and the Middle Passage." PBS.org: Africans in America. 2006. [22 May 2006] http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part1/1narr4.html
• "Colonialism." Answers.com. [22 May 2006] <http://www.answers.com/topic/colonialism>
• "The History Book." Directed, written, and compiled by Li Vilstrup and Jannik Hastrup 1975.

More papers on "The History Book":

• Analytical Essay # 55260 : "The History Book"
• Book Review # 146574 : "Leadership in "The Histories, Book I"
• Book Review # 140601 : "The History Of The Conquest Of Peru"

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