Disasters and history : : the vulnerability and resilience of past societies / / edited by B. J. P. van Bavel [and six others].

• TeilnehmendeR: Bavel, B. J. P. van, 1964-
• Place / Publishing House: Cambridge, United Kingdom : : Cambridge University Press,, 2020.
• Year of Publication: 2020
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (x, 231 pages)

"This monograph provides an overview of research into disasters from a historical perspective, making two new contributions. First, it introduces the field of 'disaster studies' to history, showing how we can use history to better understand how societies deal with shocks and hazards and their potentially disastrous outcomes. Despite growing recognition of the importance of historical depth by scholars investigating disasters, the temporal dimensions of disasters have been underexploited up to now. Moreover, the historical record sometimes enables us to make a long-term reconstruction of the social, economic and cultural effects of hazards and shocks simply not possible in contemporary disaster studies material. We can therefore use 'the past' as a laboratory to test hypotheses of relevance to the present in a careful way. History lends itself towards this end because of the opportunity it offers to identify distinct and divergent social and environmental patterns and trajectories. We can compare the drivers and constraints of societal responses to shocks spatially and chronologically, and therefore enrich our understanding of responses to stress today" -- Provided by publisher.

Table of Contents

Preface -- 1. Introduction: Disasters and History -- 2. Classification and Concepts -- 3. History as a Laboratory: Materials and Methods -- 4. Disaster Preconditions and Pressures -- 5. Disaster Responses -- 6. Effects of Disasters -- 7. Disaster History and/in the Anthropocene.