From ancient times to the present, mankind has built barriers: against the elements, against predatory animals, against other humans. These edifices of mud, brick, and stone circle the globe. Frye examines the history of walls, and reveals the startling ways that barriers have affected our psyches. He questions: Did walls make civilization possible? And can we live without them? -- adapted from jacket.

Introduction : A wall against the wasteland -- Part one. Builders and barbarians. Midwife to civilization : wall builders at the dawn of history : the ancient Near East, 2500-500 BC -- To wall or not to wall? : Greece, 600-338 BC -- "Cries of pain and sadness" : China, 214 BC -- Wallers and warriors : life outside the walls : Eurasia, 2000 BC-AD 1800 -- Part two. The great age of walls. Prologue to the great age of walls : Alexander's gates : timeless folklore -- Walls connect Eurasia : China and central Asia, c. 100 BC -- Hadrian's walls : the Roman Empire, AD 117-38 -- Paradise lost : The Roman Empire, c. AD 300 -- Defenseless behind walls : The Roman and Byzantine Empires, AD 400-600 -- Cycles of walls and despots : China, AD 280-1600 -- Walls and the Apocalypse : Western and Central Asia, AD 500-1300 -- Part three. The world in transition. The horrible bombard : Constantinople, AD 1453 -- Beyond the pale : Ireland, Scotland, and the Russian Empire, AD 1494-c. 1800 -- Fort Brokenheart : South, Central, and North America, prehistory--AD 1800 -- Part four. A clash of symbols. The last battles : China and France, 1933-40 -- "A hell of a lot better than a war" : Berlin, 1961-89 -- Epilogue : "Love your neighbor, but don't pull down your hedge" : Earth, 1990-present.