Myths of Modern History
From the French Revolution to the 20th century world wars and the Cold War - new perspectives on key events
by Jacques R. Pauwels
Revisionist historian Jacques R. Pauwels challenges readers to reconsider what they know about some key events in the last 250 years of world history.
At a time when it’s all too easy to see history in black-and-white terms, historian Jacques R. Pauwels urges readers to let go of conventional history textbooks and re-examine historical events outside the bounds of conventional ideologies and agendas.
Pauwels uses twelve key events, from the French Revolution onwards, to debunk well-known accepted historical narratives in the western canon. He challenges readers to rethink their views by compiling the recent work of specialized scholars whose research demonstrates that the facts contradict the myths that have been offered to explain these events.
Beginning with a reconsideration of the impacts of the French Revolution, Pauwels finishes by dismantling the American narrative surrounding the use of nuclear weapons in the Second World War and the real rationale for the Cold War and the U.S.’s postwar global democracy project.
About the Author
Reviews
Jacques Pauwels is hands down one of the most important historians writing today. His work combines profound erudition with pristine clarity. He has a unique ability to channel his expansive historical knowledge into pedagogical narratives that carefully walk the reader through extremely complex historical developments. The result is, quite simply, a series of the best books on modern and contemporary history that can—and should!—be read by both specialists and complete novices. Moreover, his commitment to the tradition of what Domenico Losurdo referred to as “counter-history” leads his readers through the looking glass, so to speak. Instead of the hackneyed stories peddled by the mainstream media and educational institutions, he delivers to his readers truly insightful, and sometimes surprising, accounts of what actually happened. His books are thus real page turners that are enthralling to read and amenable to a very large audience. I regularly teach his work and recommend it to students, professors and other interested parties. I have only heard praise of his work from those to whom I’ve recommended it
For scholars, students, and anyone seeking to uncover the narratives shaping our understanding of the past. Although its radical approach may be found challenging to adherents of conventional historiography, the book’s arguments are too compelling to ignore. For those exploring the intersections of capitalism, imperialism, and democracy, Pauwels’ work provides a thought-provoking and accessible entry point, and serves as a necessary corrective to the sanitized narratives currently dominating public discourse and scholarship.