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The Ideas That Conquered The World
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Product Description
One of America's leading foreign policy thinkers provides an "important and compelling" look at today's new power realities (Thomas L. Friedman, The New York Times ). In a time of war and uncertainty, The Ideas That Conquered the World offers a major statement about the fault lines of the twenty- first century, from globalization to terrorism, from great-power conflict to common security. Michael Mandelbaum argues that three ideas dominate the world: peace as the preferred basis for relations between and among countries, democracy as the optimal way to organize political life, and free markets as the indispensable vehicle for the creation of wealth. While not practiced everywhere, they have-for the first time in history-no serious rivals. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and the American military excursions into Afghanistan and Iraq that followed have not changed this. In The Ideas That Conquered the World , Michael Mandelbaum describes the uneven spread over the past two centuries of peace, democracy, and free markets around the world. And he assesses the prospects for these ideas in the years to come, giving particular attention to the United States, which bears the greatest responsibility for protecting and promoting them, and to Russia, China, and the Middle East, where their fate will affect the rest of the world.
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First Sentence
FOR A BRIEF MOMENT in the winter of 1918-19, Woodrow Wilson, the twenty-eighth American president, bestrode the world like a colossus. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
FOR A BRIEF MOMENT in the winter of 1918-19, Woodrow Wilson, the twenty-eighth American president, bestrode the world like a colossus. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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10 reviews
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Beautifully written, with plenty of food for thought
19 Oct 2002
Format:Hardcover
Michael Mandelbaum, one of America's foremost thinkers on world politics, has written a book about the political and economic forces shaping the world. His analysis is a model of clarity and incisiveness and offers a refreshing alternative to the now-standard prophecies of gloom and doom. Mandelbaum is a professor, but he writes like a novelist, and in this book, which gives the average reader a wonderful framework for understanding everything in the news today and tomorrow, he makes his points with great stories, and even some jokes. He's a great writer, and I recommend this book without hesitation. It's a pleasure to read, from start to finish. It makes sense of our world, which many say has been irrevocably changed by the September 11 attacks, without getting caught in the weeds and by highlighting the critical, long-term ideas and trends that are shaping it. There's no better book out there if you want to understand where we are headed and why. A great buy--and a great read.
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Bold, and Brilliant
13 Sep 2003
Format:Hardcover
It is rare these days to find a book on world affairs that has an original and provocative thesis and that is also a pleasure to read. Mandelbaum has written just such a volume. His purpose is nothing less than to identify the main forces--markets and democracy--shaping the contemporary world, and he does so by moving effortlessly from the overall claim to real-world examples and back again. The lines of the forest are always in view but there are plenty of trees, and the main argument is made with compelling clarity, conviction, and the occasional bit of humor. Despite Mandelbaum's crystal clear prose, it's apparent that some reviewers (see below) fail to grasp his main points. Fundamentalist Islam as an alternative to liberal democratic capitalism? Just where exactly have people, when given the opportunity to freely elect their leaders, chosen a Taliban-like model? And what have such regimes, when they have grabbed power, brought people except poverty and brutality? As for the absence of capitalism in the Judeo-Christian world in the 7th and 8th centuries (!), one need not have read Karl Polanyi's "Great Transformation" to understand that many complex changes had to unfold before national markets arose; any regular history book should suffice. Modern democracy, too, could not have taken root over a thousand years ago for precisely the same reason. Mandelbaum is not saying that all you need for markets and democracy is the Judeo-Christian ethic; he identifies it as being AMONG the critical factors that promoted their growth. Alas, even the most lucid writer is fated to have his ideas misunderstood. Buy the book; it's terrific.
28 of 35 people found the following review helpful
Outstanding, thought-provoking book
27 Jan 2003
Format:Hardcover
If you, like me, have become a follower of the thoughts of Thomas Friedman, you'll love this book, too. Its clear, entertaining detail of "liberal" history---and in this context, even Newt Gingrich was a liberal---and the triumph of the ideas of Woodrow Wilson is a great read. I credit Friedmen with awakening interest in foreign policy analysis, but I credit people like Mandelbaum, Friedman and Walter Russell Mead for providing foreign policy analysis that is passionate and engaging, rather than what I expected, which was dry and over-informative.
My only criticism of the book was the first third was a little repetitive. He kept repeating the part about the triumph of Wilson's ideas, but I started to say, "Hey, I GET IT already."
Anyway, that shouldn't scare anyone off. If you are interested in this type of reading, I would highly recommend reading this one.
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