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I have just released the latest in my review of Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire series. In this one there is an account of what somebody thinks of living in the empire. It sounds surprisingly contemporary.[html][/html]
I went ahead and edited the link on your post to include the video, since the link you put in wasn't working correctly. I hope you don't mind. I will take a look at the video and then post my thoughts shortly.
I haven't seen your other episodes in this series, but it seems like quite a close examination of Gibbon's work. A general question – how much of the review comes from your own analysis/opinions, and how much do you present Gibbon's view/opinions of the history of Rome? I wasn't sure if you attempt to present the facts of his work only or to analyze of his presentation of Roman history. Both topics are ripe for discussion.
The aim is to give people the idea of what it is like reading the book. I don't have any particular frame in mind. Gibbon himself varies his approach quite a bit. When he is being analytical I'll sometimes compare what he thought with what we think now. When he gets facts wrong I'll often point it out. But when he is storytelling I'll just go along with it. Basically, I am aiming for entertaining people and getting them interested in the book rather than anything academic.
