Imperialism and the Corruption of Democracies

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Government, Democracy, History, World History, Politics, History & Theory
Cover of the book Imperialism and the Corruption of Democracies by Herman Lebovics, Duke University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Herman Lebovics ISBN: 9780822387794
Publisher: Duke University Press Publication: February 14, 2006
Imprint: Duke University Press Books Language: English
Author: Herman Lebovics
ISBN: 9780822387794
Publisher: Duke University Press
Publication: February 14, 2006
Imprint: Duke University Press Books
Language: English

In this important volume, Herman Lebovics, a preeminent cultural historian of France, develops a historical argument with striking contemporary relevance: empire abroad inevitably undermines democracy at home. These essays, which Lebovics wrote over the past decade, demonstrate the impressive intellectual range of his work. Focusing primarily on France and to a lesser extent on the United Kingdom, he shows how empire and its repercussions have pervaded—and corroded—Western cultural, intellectual, and social life from the mid-nineteenth century to the present.

Some essays explore why modern Western democratic societies needed colonialism. Among these is an examination of the seventeenth-century philosopher John Locke’s prescient conclusion that liberalism could only control democratic forces with the promise of greater wealth enabled by empire. In other essays Lebovics considers the relation between overseas rule and domestic life. Discussing George Orwell’s tale “Shooting an Elephant” and the careers of two colonial officers (one British and one French), he contemplates the ruinous authoritarianism that develops among the administrators of empire. Lebovics considers Pierre Bourdieu’s thinking about how colonialism affected metropolitan French life, and he reflects on the split between sociology and ethnology, which was partly based on a desire among intellectuals to think one way about metropolitan populations and another about colonial subjects. Turning to the arts, Lebovics traces how modernists used the colonial “exotic” to escape the politicized and contested modernity of the urban West. Imperialism and the Corruption of Democracies is a compelling case for cultural history as a key tool for understanding the injurious effects of imperialism and its present-day manifestations within globalization.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In this important volume, Herman Lebovics, a preeminent cultural historian of France, develops a historical argument with striking contemporary relevance: empire abroad inevitably undermines democracy at home. These essays, which Lebovics wrote over the past decade, demonstrate the impressive intellectual range of his work. Focusing primarily on France and to a lesser extent on the United Kingdom, he shows how empire and its repercussions have pervaded—and corroded—Western cultural, intellectual, and social life from the mid-nineteenth century to the present.

Some essays explore why modern Western democratic societies needed colonialism. Among these is an examination of the seventeenth-century philosopher John Locke’s prescient conclusion that liberalism could only control democratic forces with the promise of greater wealth enabled by empire. In other essays Lebovics considers the relation between overseas rule and domestic life. Discussing George Orwell’s tale “Shooting an Elephant” and the careers of two colonial officers (one British and one French), he contemplates the ruinous authoritarianism that develops among the administrators of empire. Lebovics considers Pierre Bourdieu’s thinking about how colonialism affected metropolitan French life, and he reflects on the split between sociology and ethnology, which was partly based on a desire among intellectuals to think one way about metropolitan populations and another about colonial subjects. Turning to the arts, Lebovics traces how modernists used the colonial “exotic” to escape the politicized and contested modernity of the urban West. Imperialism and the Corruption of Democracies is a compelling case for cultural history as a key tool for understanding the injurious effects of imperialism and its present-day manifestations within globalization.

More books from Duke University Press

Cover of the book Inventing Film Studies by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Feeling Women's Liberation by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Tropical Freedom by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book The Environment and the People in American Cities, 1600s-1900s by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Class and the Color Line by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Haydée Santamaría, Cuban Revolutionary by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Native Sons by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Novel Gazing by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Tarrying with the Negative by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Latent Destinies by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book The Repeating Body by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Managing African Portugal by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Orientalism and Modernism by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Public Privates by Herman Lebovics
Cover of the book Alimentary Tracts by Herman Lebovics
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy