The Measure of Civilisation
Ian Morris
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Geisteswissenschaften, Kunst, Musik / Geschichte
Beschreibung
In Why the West Rules - For Now Ian Morris argues that to understand the development of East and West, we need to look beyond 'long-term lock-in' theories (that suggest it was inevitable) and 'short-term accident' theories. Instead, we need to measure social development - a group's ability to master its environment to get things done - and use the results to look at the patterns of history.
Why the West Rules - For Now briefly describes the methods used to calculate Eastern and Western social development scores since the ice age; in The Measure of Civilisation, Morris expands upon these methods, discussing possible objections to this approach, and providing fascinating accounts of his gathering of evidence for his calculations. It is a magnificent account of where our understanding of the development of East and West comes from, and an unusual insight into a master thinker at work.
Rezensionen
Ian Morris has returned history to the position it once held: no longer a series of dusty debates, nor simple stories--although he has many stories to tell and tells them brilliantly--but a true magister vitae, '
Ian Morris has done it again. He has enriched the argument about 'why the West rules' with a treasure trove of information about social development over the last 16,000 years. No one seriously interested in world or 'big'
Morris is the world'
This is a superb book. Measuring how societies learned to harness energy better, improve their organizational and war-making capacities, and accumulate usable information, Ian Morris has developed a terrific index of social development. His fascinating conclusions and use of data will be controversial, but this book will become a classic source for anyone studying the nature of progress from sixteen thousand years ago to now.
A provocative and extraordinary contribution to wide-screen comparative history ... a true banquet of ideas
An important book - one that challenges, stimulates and entertains. Anyone who does not believe there are lessons to be learned from history should start here
<i>The Measure of Civilization</i> is a terrific book-it will inform, stimulate, and challenge you. Beautifully summarizing and quantifying the major developments in energy capture, social organization, war technology, and categorization, storage, and communication of information over the last sixteen millennia, this book shows how far we have come and how this journey has been a cumulative process.
Praise for Ian Morris: "Morris is a lucid thinker and a fine writer . . . possessed of a welcome sense of humor that helps him guide us through this grand game of history as if he were an erudite sportscaster."
<p>Praise for <i>Why The West Rules - For Now:</i><br><br>'
For all those interested in why the West, not the East, industrialized first, this succinct and intelligent book provides new data, a new conceptual tool, and a promising new approach to this major question. It is a valuable, critical guide to Morris'
Morris'
The ingenuity and style of his arguments will make economists and historians stand up and take notice.