In his view, whoever controls the Silk Roads also controls the globe. Therefore, it might make more sense to think of it in the plural: the Silk Roads.Īs Frankopan’s narrative makes clear, the history of the world can be told as a story of trade. It’s been added on to and reiterated, and it’s been through many phases. But the Silk Road was not an isolated historical phenomenon. This road brought the world together, as people from both East and West traded along its many arteries. At the height of its importance, this network acquired a name, the Silk Road, which Marco Polo famously followed on his travels from Italy to China. The network of trade routes that took shape in ancient Mesopotamia has morphed, changed and spread along with our ever-changing world. So what actually is important? Well, to borrow a well-known phrase from Bill Clinton’s campaign team, the economy, stupid! People, even mighty emperors, are tiny pieces in an impossibly complex puzzle. Others turn it into a narrative, a sort of epic tale of major events. Some historians make it seem like an adventure story, zeroing in on kings and politicians and other prominent personalities. When grappling with such an outsized subject, it’s tempting to try to streamline it.
The history of the world is a mighty big topic.
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