Revolution and rebellion in the early modern world
Publisher description: What can the great crises of the past teach us about contemporary revolutions? Arguing from an exciting and original perspective, Goldstone suggests that great revolutions were the product of 'ecological crises' that occurred when inflexible political, economic, and social institutions were overwhelmed by the cumulative pressure of population growth on limited available resources. Moreover, he contends that the causes of the great revolutions of Europe--the English and French revolutions--were similar to those of the great rebellions of Asia, which shattered dynasties in Ottoman Turkey, China, and Japan. The author observes that revolutions and rebellions have more often produced a crushing state orthodoxy than liberal institutions, leading to the conclusion that perhaps it is vain to expect revolution to bring democracy and economic progress. Instead, contends Goldstone, the path to these goals must begin with respect for individual liberty rather than authoritarian movements of 'national liberation.' Arguing that the threat of revolution is still with us, Goldstone urges us to heed the lessons of the past. He sees in the United States a repetition of the behavior patterns that have led to internal decay and international decline in the past, a situation calling for new leadership and careful attention to the balance between our consumption and our resources
History
1 online resource (xxix, 608 pages) : illustrations, maps
9780520913752, 9780585078786, 9780520067585, 9780520082670, 0520913752, 0585078785, 0520067584, 0520082672
44954934
1. The central problem : how to explain the periodic waves of state breakdown in the early modern world
2. State breakdown in early modern Europe : the English Revolution
3. State breakdown in early modern Europe : the French Revolution
4. State breakdown in early modern Asia : the Ottoman crisis and the Ming-Qing transition
5. Ideology, cultural frameworks, revolutioary struggles, and state reconstruction
6. From past to present
Appendix. Compiling French and English national income and tax tables
English
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