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Peter Chardon Brooks Adams (June 24, 1848 - February 13, 1927) was an American historian, political scientist and a critic of capitalism.He graduated from Harvard University in 1870 and studied at Harvard Law School in 1870 and 1871. Adams believed that commercial civilizations rise and fall in predictable cycles. First, masses of people draw together in large population centers and engage in commercial activities. As their desire for wealth grows, they discard spiritual and creative values. Their greed leads to distrust and dishonesty, and eventually the society crumbles. In The Law of Civilization and Decay (1895), Adams noted that as new population centers emerged in the west, centers of ...
Peter Chardon Brooks Adams (June 24, 1848 - February 13, 1927) was an American historian, political scientist and a critic of capitalism.He graduated from Harvard University in 1870 and studied at Harvard Law School in 1870 and 1871. Adams believed that commercial civilizations rise and fall in predictable cycles. First, masses of people draw together in large population centers and engage in commercial activities. As their desire for wealth grows, they discard spiritual and creative values. Their greed leads to distrust and dishonesty, and eventually the society crumbles. In The Law of Civilization and Decay (1895), Adams noted that as new population centers emerged in the west, centers of ...
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This classic work, by the distinguished historian Walter LaFeber, presents his widely influential argument that economic causes were the primary forces propelling America to world power in the nineteenth century. Cornell University Press is proud to issue this thirty-fifth anniversary edition, featuring a new preface by the author."In this Beveridge Award-winning study, Walter LaFeber... probes beneath the apparently quiet surface of late nineteenth-century American diplomacy, undisturbed by major wars and undistinguished by important statements of policy. He finds those who shaped American diplomacy believed expanding foreign markets were the cure for recurring depressions.... In thoroughly documenting economic pressure on American foreign policy of the late nineteenth century, the author has illuminated a shadowy corner of the national experience.... The theory that America was thrust by events into a position of world power it never sought and was unprepared to discharge must now be re-examined. Also brought into question is the thesis that American policymakers have depended for direction on the uncertain compass of utopian idealism."--American Historical Review
I wrote this little volume more than thirty years ago, since when I have hardly opened it. Therefore I now read it almost as if it were written by another man, and I find to my relief that, on the whole, I think rather better of it than I did when I published it. Indeed, as a criticism of what were then the accepted views of Massachusetts history, as expounded by her most authoritative historians, I see nothing in it to retract or even to modify. I do, however, somewhat regret the rather acrimonious tone which I occasionally adopted when speaking of the more conservative section of the clergy. Not that I think that the Mathers, for example, and their like, did not deserve all, or, indeed, more than all I ever said or thought of them, but because I conceive that equally effective strictures might have been conveyed in urbaner language; and, as I age, I shrink from anything akin to invective, even in what amounts to controversy.
The Law of Civilization and Decay: An Essay on History by Brooks Adams is a historical and philosophical work that explores the rise and fall of civilizations. The book introduces the idea of a cyclical pattern of growth and decline in societies, drawing upon historical examples and the influence of economic and social factors. Key Aspects of the Book "The Law of Civilization and Decay": Civilizational Dynamics: The book proposes a theory of the cyclical nature of civilizations, examining how economic, social, and political factors contribute to their ascent and eventual decline. Historical Analysis: It provides historical case studies and examples that support the idea of recurring patterns in the development and disintegration of societies. Societal Reflection: The book encourages readers to consider the lessons from history and how understanding these patterns can contribute to societal improvement. Brooks Adams offers insights into the ebb and flow of civilizations in "The Law of Civilization and Decay." Adams' work engages with history, economics, and philosophy to examine the broader trends that shape human societies.