The Rise of the West
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| - | :''[[The European Miracle]]'' | + | '''''The Rise of the West: A History of the Human Community''''' (1963) is a book by [[University of Chicago]] historian [[William H. McNeill (historian)|William H. McNeill]], enlarged with a retrospective preface in 1991. It explored [[world history]] in terms of the effect different old world civilizations had on one another, and especially the deep influence of [[Western culture|Western civilization]] on the rest of the world in the past 500 years. He argues that societal contact with foreign civilizations is the primary force in driving historical change. In 1964 it won the [[National Book Award]] [[List of winners of the National Book Award#History and Biography|in History and Biography]]. |
| - | The '''Great Divergence''', coined by [[Samuel P. Huntington|Samuel Huntington]] (also known as the '''European miracle''', a term coined by [[Eric Jones (economic historian)|Eric Jones]] in 1981), refers to the process by which the [[Western world]] (i.e. [[Western Europe]] and the parts of the [[New World]] where its people became the dominant populations) during the [[Modern period]] (16th to 19th centuries) clearly emerged as the most powerful world [[civilization]], eclipsing the [[Islamic empire]]s (the [[Ottoman Empire]], [[Mughal Empire|Mughal India]]), [[Tokugawa shogunate|Tokugawa Japan]], and [[Qing Dynasty|Qing China]]. | + | |
| - | The process was accompanied and reinforced by the [[Age of Discovery]] and the subsequent rise of the [[colonial empires]], the [[Age of Enlightenment]], the [[Commercial Revolution]], the [[Scientific Revolution]] and finally the [[Industrial Revolution]]. The Great Divergence was affected by several factors, including technology, industrialization and economics, politics and leadership, and specific ideologies. | + | |
| - | Technological advances in [[railroads]], [[steamboats]], [[mining]], and [[agriculture]] were embraced to a higher degree in the West than the East during the Great Divergence. High wages in the West caused businesses to focus efforts on engineering labor-saving machinery, while the East continued to rely on their sources of cheap labor. Shifts in government policy from interventionist mercantilism to laissez faire helped western development, while a shift from traditional confucianism to interventionist policies under the [[Qing Dynasty]] greatly restricted Chinese industrial development. Technology led to increased industrialization and economic complexity in the areas of agriculture, trade, fuel and resources, further separating the East and the West. Europe’s industrial advantages allowed it to surpass the East. Europe's use of [[coal]] as an energy substitute for wood in the mid-1800s gave Europe a major head start in modern energy production. On the other hand, China did not begin to use coal in large-scale industry until the 20th century. The West also had the advantage of larger quantities of [[raw materials]] and a substantial trading market. China and Asia did participate in trading, however [[colonization]] brought a distinct advantage to the West. | + | ==Description== |
| - | Politics and leadership, a staple in almost every country at the time of the Great Divergence, were influenced and executed in distinct manners in both the East and the West. Political ideas and lack thereof warranted either progression into the modern world, regression, or no change at all. Strong countries like [[Great Britain]] set the model for representative governments in the West. On the other hand, [[Japan]], with its retention of traditional values and incorporation of western views was a model for countries in the East. Other countries of interest include [[France]], [[Spain]], [[China]], and the [[Netherlands]]. | + | Part I of ''The Rise of the West'' discusses evolutionary prehistory, the breakthrough to [[civilization]] in [[Mesopotamia]], the era of Middle Eastern dominance, and the formation of peripheral civilizations in India, Greece, and China to 500 B.C. |
| - | The most important ideologies include [[Laissez-faire]], [[mercantilism]], [[Confucianism]], and [[materialism]]. Ideologies influenced government policies and social altitudes. [[Laissez-faire]], an economic ideology, was created during the [[Industrial Revolution]] as a belief that trade and economics should exist without government interference. [[Materialism]] illustrated a shift towards secular thinking. [[Confucianism]], dominant in China for millenia, stressed that every class of society should behave in accordance with moral standards and rules and was largely opposed to state interference. [[Mercantilism]], an ideology dominant before the rise of classical liberalism, which promoted interventionist policies such as [[protectionism]], [[state monopolies]], and high taxes which allegedly brought economic benefits. | + | Part II discusses the Eurasian cultural balance to 1500 AD, including the expansion of [[Hellenistic civilization|Hellenism]], the closure of the Eurasian [[ecumene]], the development of major religions, the barbarian onslaught, resurgence of the Middle East, and [[steppe]] conquerors. McNeill proposes that the basic engine of world history during this period is the temporary primacy of different regions of the ecumene, with a rough parity reestablished as innovations spread to other centers of civilization. The sequence is Hellenistic / Indian / Islamic / Chinese and Mongol. Generally the eras are structured in terms of the internal history of the dominant region, followed by the history of the rest of the world with a focus on how they reacted to the diffusing techniques and ideas of the dominant region. |
| - | ==See also== | + | |
| - | *[[Colonial empire]] | + | Part III examines the era of Western dominance. From 1500 to 1750 this is represented by the challenge of Western Europe to the world in a period of [[Exploitation of labour#In developing nations|exploitation]] and [[colonization]] and the changing balance of the [[ecumene]] in the Islamic world, the Far East, and Africa. Before 1750, Western superiority is similar in scope to the primacy previously enjoyed by other regions. The book describes the "tottering balance" of older orders within Europe, European expansion and [[acculturation]] in outliers, including the Americas. The rise of the West on a cosmopolitan scale from 1750 to 1950 is described as to continued territorial expansion, [[industrialism]], the democratic revolution, and intellectual aspects. This period marks a discontinuity: the global influence of the West expands beyond all historical parallels. |
| - | *[[Western empires]] | + | |
| - | *[[Modern history]] | + | ==Reception== |
| - | *[[Second European colonization wave (19th century–20th century)]] | + | |
| - | *[[Rise of the New Imperialism]] | + | [[Hugh Trevor-Roper]] wrote a glowing review in ''[[The New York Times Book Review]]''. McNeill's ''Rise of the West'' won the U.S. [[National Book Award]] [[List of winners of the National Book Award#History and Biography|in History and Biography]] in 1964. The book also won the U.S. [[National Book Award]] [[List of winners of the National Book Award#History and Biography|in History and Biography]] in 1964 and was named one of the [[Modern Library 100 Best Nonfiction|100 Best Nonfiction Books]] of the 20th century by the [[Modern Library]]. One critical response has been that the West did not rise, the East fell or withdrew. |
| - | *[[Economic history of China (pre-1911)]] | + | |
| - | *[[Joseph Needham]] | + | The ''Rise'' had two major effects on historical analysis. First, it challenged the view of [[civilizations]] as independent entities subject to rise and fall as postulated by [[Arnold J. Toynbee]] and [[Oswald Spengler]], who viewed civilizations as discrete and independent. McNeill had actually conceived of the book as a student in 1936 to counter the theses of Spengler's ''[[The Decline of the West|Decline of the West]]'' (the title ''The Rise of the West'' chosen as a deliberate contrast) and Toynbee's ''[[A Study of History]]'', which "postulated that civilizations marched to their own drummers, largely unaffected by foreign influences". McNeill, on the other hand, stresses the diffusion of techniques and ideas, making connections between civilizations crucially important. Second, it provided a framework for theories like [[world-systems theory]] and [[dependency theory]], which "cemented the centrality of the 'West' in world history". |
| - | ;Books | + | |
| - | *''[[Guns, Germs, and Steel]]'' | + | It's important to note, however, that in a 1990 article in the ''[[Journal of World History]]'', McNeill reflected that ''The Rise of the West'' must be viewed as "an expression of the [[Economic history of the United States#Postwar prosperity: 1945–1973|postwar]] [[Cold War|imperial mood]] in the [[History of the United States (1945–64)|United States]]" and admitted that it could somewhat be seen as a "form of intellectual imperialism". Later, in a 1991 essay, McNeill emphasized that the unifying theme of his book was the importance of interrelation and cultural diffusion rather than a flat description of western history's effect on other civilizations. |
| - | *''[[The Civilizing Process]]'' | + | |
| - | *''[[The European Miracle]]'' | + | == See also == |
| - | *''[[The Rise of the West: A History of the Human Community]]'' | + | * [[Great Divergence]] |
| - | *''[[The Clash of Civilizations]]'' | + | * ''[[Guns, Germs, and Steel]]'' |
| - | *''[[Gregory Clark (economist)#A Farewell to Alms|A Farewell to Alms]]'' | + | * [[William H. McNeill (historian)]] |
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The Rise of the West: A History of the Human Community (1963) is a book by University of Chicago historian William H. McNeill, enlarged with a retrospective preface in 1991. It explored world history in terms of the effect different old world civilizations had on one another, and especially the deep influence of Western civilization on the rest of the world in the past 500 years. He argues that societal contact with foreign civilizations is the primary force in driving historical change. In 1964 it won the National Book Award in History and Biography.
Description
Part I of The Rise of the West discusses evolutionary prehistory, the breakthrough to civilization in Mesopotamia, the era of Middle Eastern dominance, and the formation of peripheral civilizations in India, Greece, and China to 500 B.C.
Part II discusses the Eurasian cultural balance to 1500 AD, including the expansion of Hellenism, the closure of the Eurasian ecumene, the development of major religions, the barbarian onslaught, resurgence of the Middle East, and steppe conquerors. McNeill proposes that the basic engine of world history during this period is the temporary primacy of different regions of the ecumene, with a rough parity reestablished as innovations spread to other centers of civilization. The sequence is Hellenistic / Indian / Islamic / Chinese and Mongol. Generally the eras are structured in terms of the internal history of the dominant region, followed by the history of the rest of the world with a focus on how they reacted to the diffusing techniques and ideas of the dominant region.
Part III examines the era of Western dominance. From 1500 to 1750 this is represented by the challenge of Western Europe to the world in a period of exploitation and colonization and the changing balance of the ecumene in the Islamic world, the Far East, and Africa. Before 1750, Western superiority is similar in scope to the primacy previously enjoyed by other regions. The book describes the "tottering balance" of older orders within Europe, European expansion and acculturation in outliers, including the Americas. The rise of the West on a cosmopolitan scale from 1750 to 1950 is described as to continued territorial expansion, industrialism, the democratic revolution, and intellectual aspects. This period marks a discontinuity: the global influence of the West expands beyond all historical parallels.
Reception
Hugh Trevor-Roper wrote a glowing review in The New York Times Book Review. McNeill's Rise of the West won the U.S. National Book Award in History and Biography in 1964. The book also won the U.S. National Book Award in History and Biography in 1964 and was named one of the 100 Best Nonfiction Books of the 20th century by the Modern Library. One critical response has been that the West did not rise, the East fell or withdrew.
The Rise had two major effects on historical analysis. First, it challenged the view of civilizations as independent entities subject to rise and fall as postulated by Arnold J. Toynbee and Oswald Spengler, who viewed civilizations as discrete and independent. McNeill had actually conceived of the book as a student in 1936 to counter the theses of Spengler's Decline of the West (the title The Rise of the West chosen as a deliberate contrast) and Toynbee's A Study of History, which "postulated that civilizations marched to their own drummers, largely unaffected by foreign influences". McNeill, on the other hand, stresses the diffusion of techniques and ideas, making connections between civilizations crucially important. Second, it provided a framework for theories like world-systems theory and dependency theory, which "cemented the centrality of the 'West' in world history".
It's important to note, however, that in a 1990 article in the Journal of World History, McNeill reflected that The Rise of the West must be viewed as "an expression of the postwar imperial mood in the United States" and admitted that it could somewhat be seen as a "form of intellectual imperialism". Later, in a 1991 essay, McNeill emphasized that the unifying theme of his book was the importance of interrelation and cultural diffusion rather than a flat description of western history's effect on other civilizations.
See also
