Ernst Hans Gombrich was a fine historian and writer from Vienna, Austria. He was born on March 30th 1909, into a family, who struggled to survive after the events of World War I. Save the Children Fund, established in post WWI England, to save the children’s lives and “help them reach their potential”("About Us." Save the Children UK. Save the Children, n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.), sent Gombrich to Sweden, where he could grow up in a better environment. When he was older, he returned to Austria and attended Theresianum, a school that concentrated on classical studies. From 1929 to 1935 Gombrich attended Vienna University, and graduated with degrees in Psychology, Philosophy, and classical Archaeology. Gombrich received a doctorate in Art History…show more content… The year 1517, marks the beginning of Reformation of the Catholic Church and a new era of Christian religion. In 1517 the Reformation began. Martin Luther, a German, Augustinian monk, was behind this movement. At the time, the heads of the Catholic Church were more interested in fulfilling their own, earthly needs and desires, than their roles as keepers of the faith. E.H. Gombrich, in Chapter 28 talks about this period, “And in their desire to please the pope, priests and monks collected money in a way which did not conform with the teachings of the Church. They made the faithful pay for the forgiveness of their sins and called it ‘selling indulgences’”. Gombrich discusses how, Martin Luther, bravely opposed this practice and undermined the authority the Catholic Church by writing his “95 Thesis”. His aim was to make the people stop following the Church’s teachings blindly and to realize that each one was responsible for his or hers salvation. As words and information can be misinterpreted and twisted, so were the words of Luther “subject to no man, should freely and independently strive for God’s mercy” (Gombrich, p.185). Unfortunately, the peasant serfs took Luther’s word literally and rose against their masters. The time of great possibilities turned into a time of…show more content… His book was not translated into English, for 60 years as the author felt, that the British wouldn’t share his views or interest in the events .“English history was all about English kings and queens - would a European perspective mean anything to English-speaking children?” [Preface, page xviii (18)]. And yet, here we are, in 2014, reading his book, written 80 years ago. In 1935, when Gombrich wrote A Little History of the World, his ideas and points of view were shared with majority of the Western Europeans. Today’s “global nomads” mix and exchange ideas, values and perspectives of their birth countries with those of their adopted ones. This may be the reason why Gombrich’s work continues to be current in its purpose. Today’s young people, even those who are not “Third culture kids”, equipped with laptops, televisions, books, and newspapers have the ability to follow the world’s events as they happen, form their ideas and make connections between these events without ever leaving home. 80 years ago, Gombrich’s text served that purpose, as he gathered information on past events, put them in a chronological order and found ways to connect them for readers without other resources. For this reason, A Little History of the World could seem obsolete and out of touch with the needs of today’s society. However, there is something timeless about this text. A book written before the age of
