Brooks ADAMS / Law of Civilization and Decay An Essay on History 1896

Description: The Law of Civilization and Decay: An Essay on History Author: ADAMS, Brooks (1848-1927) Title: The Law of Civilization and Decay: An Essay on History Publication: New York: The Macmillan Company. Norwood Press, J. S. Cushing & Co., Berwick & Smith, Norwood Mass. 1896 Description: Publisher's original panelled brown cloth with spine ruled and lettered gilt reading Scion of an American political dynasty, the historian Brooks Adams nevertheless was an unyielding critic of the American economy and political system. His insightful Jeremiads were popular in his day, but unlike Veblen, Sinclair, and other Progressive-era voices, he is now little read. Expanded second edition copy of this classic. Brooks Adams was an American historian and critic of capitalism who questioned the success of American democracy and understood the March of Civilization to be a westward movement of centers of trade; for instance, during Brooks's lifetime, from London to New York. Adams came from a long Puritan line of Boston Brahmins: he was the son of Lincoln's ambassador at the Court of St. James, Charles Francis Adams Sr., brother to the historian Henry Adams, grandson of both President John Quincy Adams and the then-richest man in Massachusetts, Peter Chardon Adams, and the descendent of the second US president John Adams and the American revolutionary Sam Adams. In 1895, Adams published The Law of Civilization and Decay. His intention was to prove that the rise and fall of civilizations follows a definite cycle of centralization and decay. Adams outlined this theory by sketching the patterns of major periods in western history, concentrating on economic and social factors. Adams argues that social "movement," as in colonization and industrialization, leads to consolidation; consolidation, in turn, creates a comparative advantage for frugality versus artistic expression. Because Adams believed that these traits of the mind were heritable, he argues that consolidation led to the domination of one people over another, and the domination of one civilization over another. The successive rises and falls of empires were therefore dictated by their stage in this cycle relative to other empires, by which commercial centers moved from one city to another: Adams wrote history from a seemingly endless conservative-aristocratic political genealogy. But the sophistication of his understanding of the workings of American Government up to 1913 is unmatched, and his work still reads as relevant. However, he doesn't seem conscious of the fact that it is the use of political power to benefit a narrow elite which is the basic problem of government. He instead focuses on the incompetence, illogic, and irrationality of those individuals who govern the country. His thoroughgoing critiques of the American system have ensured that his writing be memory-holed. Thousands have read about his illustrious Adams Family pedigree, but few have had this opportunity to read the man's work. Seller ID: 41536 Subject: Americana & Canadiana Donald A. Heald Rare Books In our nearly fifty year history we have established ourselves among the world's leading authorities on fine antiquarian illustrated and color plate books, prints & drawings and maps. Terms All orders ship within two business days. All items are guaranteed to be as described or they may be returned within 30 days of receipt for a full refund.This listing was created by Bibliopolis.

Price: 250 USD

Location: New York, New York

End Time: 2025-02-02T19:03:00.000Z

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