Original title
The Ascent of Man
Released
5/5/1973
Origin country
GB
Genre
Documentary
Production companies
Time Life Films, BBC TV
Status
Ended
Number of seasons
1
Number of episodes
13
The Ascent of Man is a thirteen-part documentary television series produced by the BBC and Time-Life Films first transmitted in 1973, written and presented by Jacob Bronowski. Intended as a series of "personal view" documentaries in the manner of Kenneth Clark's 1969 series Civilisation, the series received acclaim for Bronowski's highly informed but eloquently simple analysis, his long unscripted monologues and its extensive location shoots.
The programme follows the changes in Man as he marches out of Africa, through desert and ice age, to leave the print of his hand in a dark Spanish cave.
As the ice retreats and the land flowers, Man the hunter turns to agriculture, domesticating plant and animal, imposing his will on the wild wheat and the horse.
The wandering nomads cease their migrations and settle in townships, learning new skills.
The programme follows the beginnings of chemistry: from the techniques of ancient metallurgy in China and Japan to the mystical searchings of the alchemists.
Mathematics is a way of describing the world that we see, hear and touch.
From the earliest times, Man has looked outwards from the earth and wondered at the movements of sun, stars and planets. The programme hinges on the crisis of the scientific conscience in the person of the astronomer Galileo and in the rich cities of Venice and Rome, the scenes both of his triumph and his punishment.
The universe of Newton, clear, English, stately, like the music and the great buildings of his century ticking away with a fine clockwork mechanism, wisely regulated by laws. Then the quizzical world of Einstein whose direct truth and questions could turn the dignified universe upside-down in the interests of a clearer understanding. We ride with Einstein on his beam of light to end our journey in our own century.
As political revolutions shook France and America, another quieter, yet more profound restructuring was taking place in Britain - the Industrial Revolution.
How did life begin on earth? Dr Jacob Bronowski recounts the adventures of Alfred Russell Wallace, and how they triggered off the ideas of Charles Darwin.
Dr Jacob Bronowski tells the story of the men and ideas that gave concrete expression to the invisible, intangible structure that lies beneath all matter.
Dr Jacob Bronowski considers how the great achievement of physics in the 20th century has been to show that absolute certainty, in science or outside of it, is beyond our grasp.
Dr Jacob Bronowski follows the history of genetics, from the lonely experiments of Gregor Mendel to the discovery of the structure of DNA. Should we see human sexuality as a gift?
From his home, Dr Jacob Bronowski takes stock of man's complex and often precarious ascent, drawing on experiences from his own lifetime.
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