Reviews

The Travels by Marco Polo

denise_na's review against another edition

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3.0

#8: kollokvier, første semester.
Marco Polos beskrivelser af kontinentet Asien, hvor han som barn af en jordomrejser befandt sig meget af sit liv - både som barn og i voksenlivet. I denne udgave af The Travels of Marco Polo, bliver der løbende retter på Marco Polos beskrivelser, hvilket både får mig som læser til at tvivle på, hvorvidt Marco Polo taler sandt vedrørende hans færden på disse kanter. Derudover må man som læser også anderkende, at der på dette tidspunkt ikke eksisterede de samme forudsætninger og remedier til at måle afstande i forhold til landenes og byernes placering. Der er steder, hvor Marco Polo omtaler nogle lande som værende en af del af Asien, men hvor jeg som læser associerer beskrivelserne med Afrika. I henhold til dette ses det virkelig hvor uvidende mennesket var, når det kom til andres kulturer, da beskrivelserne af mennesker i både Asien og Afrika er meget racistiske og på ingen måder ville blive godtaget i dag.

dkevanstoronto's review against another edition

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5.0

A beautiful book. Did he experience what he says he did, it hardly matters. A man of wide understanding of the world, gives a simple and entertaining voyage in the middle ages. You can't go wrong for historical and geographical adventure and wonder.

melanieeeg's review against another edition

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5.0

Absolute classic of a book. Will always reccomend to anyone wanting to get some more books under their wing.

woodlandbooklover's review against another edition

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3.0

It is a systematic cataloging of villages, cities, and kingdoms throughout Persia, Asia, and India. Many of the entries would be of interest to historians but no one else because they are repetitive and just log the people's religion, what money they use, what they eat. It's not something you sit down and read for hours on end. But occasionally, the book zooms in and discusses a custom, a particular monarch, a marriage or death tradition, and it's interesting. Not surprisingly, the book shows how brutal the world was, especially toward women and girls. It's interesting to see how he describes things we find common knowledge, like what coal was, or figuring out that an "Indian nut" is a coconut, or a "camelopard" is a giraffe. The illustrations are a nice respite in the cataloging.

mary's review

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adventurous funny slow-paced

3.5

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