Wednesday, January 1, 2020

CivilizationThe West and the Rest by Niall Ferguson

In this intricate time, Niall Ferguson, the author of Civilization: The West and the Rest, presents a story and what appears as a defense of the ascend of the west to supremacy and its unrivalled influence in restructuring the world of today. The West seems to be on the defensive, confronted economically, politically, and militarily by the rise of China (delete this: as well as politically along with militarily) by a gesture of Islamist abhorrence (what do you mean by â€Å"as well as politically and militarily by a gesture of Islamist abhorrence†? It’s not clear. Are you trying to convey the idea that the West’s political and military interventions in the Muslim world are a sign of their defensive posture and abhorrence of the Muslim world? Or†¦show more content†¦The author flatly rebuffs the outlook of those who discover nothing valuable in western culture, terming their position as ridiculous. He distinguishes between the good and the bad aspects of western culture and posits that in contrast with other cultures, the enhanced side appeared on top. A number of the remarks in Civilization: The West and the Rest will not triumph over Ferguson’s contemporaries as among the sophisticated and trendy in school today. He chastises critics who talk scornfully about Eurocentrism, as if it was distasteful chauvinism. The scientific revolt was, by whichever scientific gauge, entirely Eurocentric. Ferguson offers high opinion to the academic and scientific inputs of China in addition to Islam; however, he makes it apparent that contemporary science and technology are essentially Western products. Ferguson questions whether a non-Western state can acquire scientific knowledge without compliance to other crucial western ideals like private property, liberty, the rule of law, and a representative government (Chase, 32). In numerous ways, Ferguson is a being of his generation and the position he has selected to live. The epoch symbolized by his extreme neo-liberalism is currently not as fashionable as it used to be. As such, Ferguson subsisted in America, as he affirms in his foreword, because he was involved in money and power, which reallyShow MoreRelatedCivilization : The West And The Rest Essay2220 Words   |  9 PagesCivilization: The West and the Rest, presented by Niall Ferguson, is a documentary in which Ferguson reveals what he calls the six killer applications which has helped Western civilization dominate over everyone else. These six applications are competition, science, property, medicine, consumerism, and work. Ferguson asks many questions over the course of the series as well as provides examples as to how Western civilization has surpassed other nations and empires. Ferguson’s main question inRead MoreFerguson term paper1168 Words   |  5 Pagesblack boxes to â€Å"dem onstrate that Western institutions have indeed degenerated† (Ferguson page 11). The first of these â€Å"long-sealed† boxes is â€Å" labelled ‘democracy’. The second is labelled ‘capitalism’. The third is ‘the rule of law’. And the fourth box labelled ‘civil society’† (Ferguson). Each one of these boxes are an important part of how our civilization works. The purpose for revealing these black boxes, Ferguson states, is â€Å"that inside these political, economic, legal, and social black boxesRead MoreWestern Civilization1515 Words   |  7 PagesCivilization: The West and the Rest Niall Ferguson’s thesis in his book â€Å"Civilization: The West and the Rest,† is to explain and prove why western civilization has exceeded the accomplishments of other nations throughout history up until present day. He attributes this world dominance to six â€Å"killer applications† the west had adopted and advanced beyond the means of any other civilizations. These applications were: competition, science, private property, medicine, consumption, and work. When explainingRead MoreAmericas Oh Sh*T Moment by Niall Ferguson Essay1097 Words   |  5 Pagesâ€Å"America’s ‘Oh Sh*t!’ Moment†, written by Niall Ferguson, a historian who teaches at Harvard University, in 2011, explores why civilizations collapse, and how America can avoid this. He does not focus only on America, but many civilizations in the past that have collapsed. Niall Ferguson is the author of Civilization: The West and The Rest. The article is creatively and cleverly written using the metaphor of modern technology to describe the way in which the societal collapse occurs. This shows thatRead MoreEmpire Notes3812 Words   |  16 PagesEmpire Niall Ferguson Introduction * To the British, as to people in the rest of the world, imperialisms golden age is now considered a stain on human history, an era of slavery and racism and the plunder of native lands and peoples. The notion that imperialism is inherently evil, and that no empire can be a good empire, is an axiom in todays geopolitics. * Examines the British Empire from an economic perspective, controversially concluding that the British Empire was, on balance, a goodRead MoreEmpire Notes3827 Words   |  16 PagesEmpire Niall Ferguson Introduction * To the British, as to people in the rest of the world, imperialisms golden age is now considered a stain on human history, an era of slavery and racism and the plunder of native lands and peoples. The notion that imperialism is inherently evil, and that no empire can be a good empire, is an axiom in todays geopolitics. * Examines the British Empire from an economic perspective, controversially concluding that the British Empire was, on balance, aRead MoreEssay about Culture Behind the Curtain1931 Words   |  8 Pagesby the early 1970s, rock culture began to be embraced by bloc governments who simply couldn’t quell the massive public demand for it. Zinaida Soumina, a Dnepropetrovsk official, explains, â€Å"The youth waited for when the fresh music records from the West would appear on the black market. Young people had forgotten their national roots, and their own national culture.† It had become clear that the soviet population wanted not only to listen to their favorite bands, but to imitate their style – AmericanRead MoreCulture Behind the Curtain Essay2940 Words   |  12 PagesRussia, but also a major reason that the West won the Cultural Cold War. Ronald Reagan made it clear in his â€Å"Remarks at the Brandenburg Gate† that the most blatant difference between communism and Western democracy is the prosperity that ascends from freedom. He asserted that Western radio broadcasts, television programming, print media, and even geographical proximity had made clear to those living behind the Iron Curtain that there was abundance in the West. He believed that even the Soviet leadersRead MoreThe Rise of China and Future of the West17670 Words   |  71 PagesThe Rise of China and the Future of the West Can the Liberal System Survive? By G. John Ikenberry January/February 2008 Summary:   Chinas rise will inevitably bring the United States unipolar moment to an end. But that does not necessarily mean a violent power struggle or the overthrow of the Western system. The U.S.-led international order can remain dominant even while integrating a more powerful China -- but only if Washington sets about strengthening that liberal order now. G. JOHNRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pagesthemes that assumed growing importance in the last decades of the twentieth century, and will very likely be considered by subsequent generations to be among the processes that distinguish that era, not only from those proceeding it but from the rest of human history altogether. The essay by Gabrielle Hecht and Paul Edwards provides a nuanced interweaving of analyses of the nuclear arms race, debates over nuclear power as a major energy source, and the communications revolution made possible

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.