Why the West Rules - For Now

The Patterns of History and What They Reveal About the Future

by

Hardcover, 608 pages

Published Nov. 1, 2010 by Viva Books.

ISBN:
978-1-84668-147-9
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5 stars (3 reviews)

In the middle of the eighteenth century, British entrepreneurs unleashed the astounding energies of steam and coal and the world changed forever. Factories, railways and gunboats then propelled the West's rise to power, and computers and nuclear weapons in the twentieth century secured its global supremacy. Today, however, many worry that the emergence of China and India spell the end of the West as a superpower.

How long will the power of the West last? In order to find out we need to know: why has the West been so dominant for the past two hundred years?

With flair and authority, historian and achaeologist Ian Morris draws uniquely on 15,000 years of history to offer fresh insights on what the future will bring. Deeply researched and brilliantly argued, Why The West Rules - For Now is a gripping and truly original history of the world.

4 editions

reviewed Why the West Rules - For Now by Ian Morris

Very readable "big" world history focusing on west vs. east

5 stars

This was a great, readable world history. The style is breezy and doesn't feel like a textbook full of dates and treaties to be memorized. (But maybe that's because I approached it voluntarily.)

Morris's idea of a single numeric metric to use to compare West and East might not seem right, but it's a great device to sort of "motivate" the narrative, and provides a pretty interesting lens through which to view the collapse of Rome and Industrial Revolution, and yields a pretty good explanation for Chinese pride and the resentment of the "century of humiliation".

reviewed Why the West Rules - For Now by Ian Morris

Why the West rules - for now

5 stars

Advised by a friend some years ago, it took me quite some time to get through this giant book, but it was totally worth it.

This book explores the possible reasons that made our world look like it is right now and gives a clear and interesting explanation on why the West rules, disregarding the early lock-in theory in favor of geographic influence and climate changes.

It's a wonderful read that will take you from 9000 BC to the present day step by step, explaining the ebbs and flows of history and the evolution of our societies throughout the ages. It taught me quite a lot and made me reframe how I saw the world and history, giving me a macro view instead of the history we are often taught of "great men".

If you have a knack for History, I recommend this book a hundred times as it will …

reviewed Why the West Rules--For Now by Ian Morris

Review of 'Why the West Rules--For Now' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I think the scope of the book is ambitious, and the brush broad. However I think the conclusions are intelligent and thought provoking. This book, written by a serious historian takes the Hari Seldon approach to understanding the world. I recommend it to all people who are looking to go from Science Fiction to non-fiction.