Originally published on June 22, 2016 (Episode 62)
Introduction
Preppers, survivalists, and doomsayers often speculate about collapse. But what happens when a civilization actually collapses?
My guest today, Eric H. Cline, helps us understand in his acclaimed book 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Princeton, 2015). The end of the Bronze Age was a catastrophe of cascading crises: drought, famine, earthquakes, invasions, and government collapse. Taken together, they dragged down entire civilizations. For those who lived through it, everything familiar soon became strange and distant.
About the Guest
Eric H. Cline is Professor of Classics and Anthropology and Director of the Capitol Archaeological Institute at George Washington University. A veteran field archaeologist, he is author of numerous books.
For Further Investigation
Eric Cline, 1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed (Princeton, 2015)
Eric Cline, The Trojan War: A Very Short Introduction (OUP, 2013)
Eric Cline (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of the Bronze Age Aegean (OUP, 2012)
Listen & Discuss
How does the Bronze Age collapse compare to modern fears of societal collapse? Can history prepare us for resilience in the face of catastrophe? If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with anyone who has ever worried about “the end of civilization,” or bought three months of dried and canned food.
