Brill E-Books

 The Uniqueness of Western Civilization

Contents

• • Preliminary Material (i-xii)   (467K)
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    • Contents
    • Preface
  • The Fall Of Western Civilization And The Rise Of Multicultural World History (1-70)   (760K)
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    • Early World Historians And The Idea Of Progress
    • Termination Of The Western Civilization Course
    • World History Texts From The 1920s To The 1940s
    • World History Texts In The 1960s
    • Rise Of Dependency Theory
    • Wallerstein’s World-System And Critical Theory
    • Franz Boas’S Relativism And Marvin Harris’S Cultural Materialism
    • The Conversion Of William McNeill: From “Rise Of The West” To “Interactive Webs”
    • Cultural Relativism, Scientific Materialism, And Humanism Combined
    • The Exclusion Of Sociobiology
    • Kant’s “Unsocial Sociability”
    • Progress And The State Of Nature
    • Dynamic Man Versus Reactive Man
    • The Ascendancy Of Multicultural World Historians
    • Patrick Manning: It Takes An African Village To Write World History
    • Disparaging The West: Felipe Fernandez-Armesto
  • Eurocentrism Over Sinocentrism (71-116)   (628K)
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    • The Basic Empirical Claims Of The Revisionists
    • The Two Arguments Of Re-Orient
    • One Asian World System?
    • The Role Of Colonial Profits
    • Trade, Power, And Liberty: The Secret Of British Imperial Success
    • China’S “High-Level Equilibrium Trap”
    • The “Geographical Limits” Of China’S Post-1400 Extensive Growth
    • Was Eighteenth Century Europe Following A Malthusian Path?
    • Was Traditional China A Low Fertility Regime?
    • Conclusion
  • Whence The Industrial Divergence? (117-164)   (640K)
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    • The Basic Propositions Of Pomeranz’s “Great Divergence”
    • Malthus Was Born Too Late In A World Too New
    • End Of The Old Malthusian Regime In England
    • Standard-Of-Living Debate
    • New World Resources Versus European Resources
    • Was Cheap Coal Sufficient Or Necessary?
    • Dynamic Rather Than Static Comparisons
    • China’S Ecological Endowments And Imperial Windfalls
  • The Continuous Creativity Of Europe (165-230)   (740K)
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    • Hobson And The Eastern Origins Of The West
    • Eurocentric Historians
    • Imitation, Innovation, And Invention
    • Revolution In Time
    • The Printing Revolution
    • The Science And Chivalry Of Henry The Navigator
    • Columbus And The Cartographic Revolution
    • The Industrial Enlightenment
    • Goldstone’s “Happy Chance” Versus Jacob’S Scientific Ethos
    • Contingency Versus Long Term Patterns
    • Europe’S Solo Act: A Mercantile-Militaristic State?
    • Military Revolutions In Europe 1300-1800
    • The Inter-State System
    • Greek Hoplites And The “Western Way Of War”
    • Mercantilism And The Birth Of Political Economy
    • Liberty And The States System
  • The ‘Rise’ Of Western Reason And Freedom (231-284)   (685K)
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    • The West Is More Than Wealth And Power
    • The Cultural Poverty Of The Revisionists
    • The Cultural Richness Of Max Weber
    • Judaism And Its Contribution To Western Rationalism
    • Schluchter On The Genetic Developmental Dynamic Of The West
    • Habermas And The Rationalization Of Substantive Values
    • The Liberal Democratic Ideals Of The West And Its Historiography
  • The Restlessness Of The Western Spirit From A Hegelian Perspective (285-340)   (692K)
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    • Change Without Progress In The East
    • Measuring Human Accomplishments
    • The Historiography Of Europe’S Revolutions
    • Phenomenology Of The Western Spirit
    • Hegel And The Geographical Basis Of The “Infinite Thirst” Of The West
    • Hegel And The Beginnings Of Western Reason
    • Hegel On The “Desire” Of World-Historical Individuals
    • The Master-Slave Dialectic And Its Historical Reference
    • Hegel’s Account Of The State Of Nature
    • Kojeve And The Fight To The Death For Pure Prestige
    • Spengler And The Faustian Soul Of The West
    • McNeill And The Indo-European Roots Of The West’S Warrior Ethos
  • The Aristocratic Egalitarianism Of Indo-Europeans And The Primordial Origins Of Western Civilization (341-418)   (813K)
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    • The Founding Fathers Of The West: Democratic Citizens Or Aristocratic Warriors?
    • Indo-Europeans As The “Other” Of World History
    • The Distinctive Indo-Europeanization Of The West
    • Chariots, Mycenaeans, And Aristocratic Berserkers
    • Aristocratic And Martial Traits
    • The Impact Of Indo-Europeans On The Civilizations Of The East
    • “Big Man” Feasting And The Origins Of Inequality
    • Prestige-Seeking Chiefs
    • From Simple To Paramount Chiefdoms
    • “Eastern” Group-Oriented And “Western” Individualizing Chiefdoms
    • City-States: Sumerian Versus Greek
    • The Autocratic Character Of Mesopotamia And Egypt
    • The Epic Of Gilgamesh Is Not A Heroic Tragedy
  • The Emergence Of The Self From The Western ‘State Of Nature’ And The Conciliation Of Christianity And Aristocratic Liberty (419-488)   (778K)
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    • Fukuyama And The Megalothymia Of The “First Men” Of The West
    • Why Hegel’s “Master” Must Be Aristocratic
    • Kojeve And The “First Appearance” Of Self-Consciousness
    • Charles Taylor And Plato’s Self-Mastery
    • The Beginnings Of Genuine Personalities In History
    • Nietzsche’s “Homer On Competition”
    • Arête And The Education Of The Greeks
    • The Roman Aristocratic Link
    • The Germanic Barbarian Rejuvenation Of The West
    • Feudalism: An Aristocratic Type Of Rule
    • Charlemagne’s Continuation Of The Western Tradition
    • Christian Virtues And Aristocratic Expansionism
    • Aristocratic Liberty And The Rise Of Representative Institutions
  • Cited Works (489-518)   (616K)
  • Index (519-527)   (432K)