The study of history has changed dramatically in recent decades. The swiftness and scale of the shift is indisputable, but its precise nature as well as its implications remain hotly contested. This study by one of the liveliest and most acute practitioners in the field, has a refreshing transparency, a determination to demystify what historians do. It looks at history as an academic discipline but also engages with the use of historical ideas in the wider world. This new edition makes this ground-breaking work more accessible and more universal. Taking into account recent world events (9/11 and the War in Iraq), she has included a new chapter on the relationships between religious, ethnic, and political identities, the history of international diplomacy, and how the world map gets reconfigured.