| The Celts: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) | 
 enlarge | Author: Barry Cunliffe
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Category: Book
List Price: $11.95
Buy Used: $4.30
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Avg. Customer Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 460811
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 176
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 6.6 x 4.3 x 0.4
ISBN: 0192804189
Dewey Decimal Number: 936.102
EAN: 9780192804181
ASIN: 0192804189
Publication Date: August 28, 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: This is a used item.
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Product Description
Savage and bloodthirsty, or civilized and peaceable? The Celts have long been a subject of enormous fascination, speculation, and misunderstanding. From the ancient Romans to the present day, their real nature has been obscured by a tangled web of preconceived ideas and stereotypes.
Barry Cunliffe seeks to reveal this fascinating people for the first time, using an impressive range of evidence, and exploring subjects such as trade, migration, and the evolution of Celtic traditions. Along the way, he exposes the way in which society's needs have shaped our visions of the Celts, and examines such colorful characters as St. Patrick, Cu Chulainn, and Boudica.
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| Customer Reviews:
What it means to be Celtic December 18, 2006
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
The Celts have had a long and complex journey, both through history and myth, and this entry in the excellent Very Short Introduction series is a great place to start tracing that journey. Some historians question whether 'Celtic' is even a meaningful or useful term. Is it a modern invention? Who were, or are, these people or peoples we call 'Celts'? Cunliffe warns at the outset that finding reliable answers will not be easy, then proceeds to make it as easy as possible.
He views the subject from various angles - linguistic, archeological, Classical (the Roman and Greek accounts), ethnological - and gradually builds a coherent picture. His bias reflects the current orthodoxy that cultural influence spread without the mass migrations that used to be assumed -- ideas and customs spread, not necessarily people. He encourages us to take a view from the Atlantic, and see the Celts as European peoples who traded along that seaboard. Some readers might wish for more detailed maps -- the author or publisher seems to assume that you will know which rivers are the Marne, Danube, etc.
This is an authoritative and accurate work, although I did spot one surprising blunder: On page 137, the ceremony of All Souls is described as taking place on October 31, preceding All Saints. In fact it follows All Saints, on November 2.
Cunliffe's prose is very readable, except that he has a fondness for litotes ("It is not unreasonable to suppose..." "It is not unlikely that..."). This can get not unirritating after a while.
A great deal of misinformation surrounds Celticism. It has become a tool for propagandists and nationalists. There is a certain amount of healthy debunking in this book, but the Celts emerge alive and well. Before I read it, I thought I was of Celtic descent on my mother's side. After reading it, I still do, but now I have some idea of what that means. If you want to know about the Celts, then you need to choose your sources with care, because - as Cunliffe hints - there are many 'lunatic fringe' publications out there. This is a safe place to start.
Exceptional ! May 23, 2005
16 out of 16 found this review helpful
For someone who wants a quick and dirty introduction yet up to date book on the ancient Celts I cannot recommend a better book. Although it is quite a short book it is highly superior to books havigng the three times the number of pages this book contains.
Although one may sometimes shy away from short books on complex topics like the Celts take heart for by placing yourself in the hands of Barry Cunliffe you are putting yourself in the hands of a master.
A winner!
High recommended.
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