The West In The World

The West in the World, Fifth Edition, prompts students to take an active, analytical approach to understanding history and historical change. Readers will come to appreciate that history does not happen in isolation but rather is the consequence of a complex set of intersecting events, forces, and human actions among which there are cause-and-effect links that extend into the present day. As it compellingly tells the story of Western civilization, The West in the World encourages a critical examination and analysis of major events and themes. The fifth edition retains the medium length of previous editions, long enough to present a comprehensive, rich narrative but concise enough to give instructors the flexibility to supplement reading with other sources and books. The fifth edition of The West in the World includes the exciting addition of LearnSmart and SmartBook, McGraw-Hill’s online adaptive learning and reading systems. LearnSmart and SmartBook are the only adaptive learning programs proven to improve performance. LearnSmart and SmartBook help students study more efficiently and retain more knowledge, allowing instructors to focus valuable class time on higher-level concepts.

The West in the World relates the story of how the west has transformed - and been transformed by - the rest of the world. The authors examine the West’s contributions to the world and how the west has changed and embraced new ideas through contact with the people outside its center. Using a political / cultural framework the text weaves a strong thread of social history into the narrative by showing how civilizations grow and are shaped through the decisions and actions of real people. The authors bring history to life by using art and maps as a central feature of learning. They build discussions of art into the narrative to help students interpret artwork, and provide analytical map guides that reveal the connections between geography, politics, and other developments. This strong, rich narrative is short enough to allow instructors the flexibility of introducing other sources and books as supplement, while giving students a solid understanding of Western Civilization without overwhelming them.

"The West in the World," Fifth Edition, prompts students to take an active, analytical approach to understanding history and historical change. Readers will come to appreciate that history does not happen in isolation but rather is the consequence of a complex set of intersecting events, forces, and human actions among which there are cause-and-effect links that extend into the present day. As it compellingly tells the story of Western civilization, "The West in the World" encourages a critical examination and analysis of major events and themes. The fifth edition retains the medium length of previous editions, long enough to present a comprehensive, rich narrative but concise enough to give instructors the flexibility to supplement reading with other sources and books. The fifth edition of "The West in the World" includes the exciting addition of LearnSmart and SmartBook, McGraw-Hill's online adaptive learning and reading systems. LearnSmart and SmartBook are the only adaptive learning programs proven to improve performance. LearnSmart and SmartBook help students study more efficiently and retain more knowledge, allowing instructors to focus valuable class time on higher-level concepts.

Spengler's work describes how we have entered into a centuries-long "world-historical" phase comparable to late antiquity, and his controversial ideas spark debate over the meaning of historiography.

From the bestselling author of The Ascent of Money and The Square and the Tower “A dazzling history of Western ideas.” —The Economist “Mr. Ferguson tells his story with characteristic verve and an eye for the felicitous phrase.” —Wall Street Journal “[W]ritten with vitality and verve . . . a tour de force.” —Boston Globe Western civilization’s rise to global dominance is the single most important historical phenomenon of the past five centuries. How did the West overtake its Eastern rivals? And has the zenith of Western power now passed? Acclaimed historian Niall Ferguson argues that beginning in the fifteenth century, the West developed six powerful new concepts, or “killer applications”—competition, science, the rule of law, modern medicine, consumerism, and the work ethic—that the Rest lacked, allowing it to surge past all other competitors. Yet now, Ferguson shows how the Rest have downloaded the killer apps the West once monopolized, while the West has literally lost faith in itself. Chronicling the rise and fall of empires alongside clashes (and fusions) of civilizations, Civilization: The West and the Rest recasts world history with force and wit. Boldly argued and teeming with memorable characters, this is Ferguson at his very best.

The Rise of the West, winner of the National Book Award for history in 1964, is famous for its ambitious scope and intellectual rigor. In it, McNeill challenges the Spengler-Toynbee view that a number of separate civilizations pursued essentially independent careers, and argues instead that human cultures interacted at every stage of their history. The author suggests that from the Neolithic beginnings of grain agriculture to the present major social changes in all parts of the world were triggered by new or newly important foreign stimuli, and he presents a persuasive narrative of world history to support this claim. In a retrospective essay titled "The Rise of the West after Twenty-five Years," McNeill shows how his book was shaped by the time and place in which it was written (1954-63). He discusses how historiography subsequently developed and suggests how his portrait of the world's past in The Rise of the West should be revised to reflect these changes. "This is not only the most learned and the most intelligent, it is also the most stimulating and fascinating book that has ever set out to recount and explain the whole history of mankind. . . . To read it is a great experience. It leaves echoes to reverberate, and seeds to germinate in the mind."—H. R. Trevor-Roper, New York Times Book Review

When faced with global instability and economic uncertainty, it is tempting for states to react by closing borders, hoarding wealth and solidifying power. We have seen it at various times in Japan, France and Italy and now it is infecting much of Europe and America, as the vote for Brexit in the UK has vividly shown. This insularity, together with increased inequality of income and wealth, threatens the future role of the West as a font of stability, prosperity and security. Part of the problem is that the principles of liberal democracy upon which the success of the West has been built have been suborned, with special interest groups such as bankers accruing too much power and too great a share of the economic cake. So how is this threat to be countered? States such as Sweden in the 1990s, California at different times or Britain under Thatcher all halted stagnation by clearing away the powers of interest groups and restoring their societies' ability to evolve. To survive, the West needs to be porous, open and flexible. From reinventing welfare systems to redefining the working age, from reimagining education to embracing automation, Emmott lays out the changes the West must make to revive itself in the moment and avoid a deathly rigid future.

Argues that as China, India, Brazil and other emerging powers rise, the founding ideals of the West will not continue to spread, and that in the near future, Europe and the United States will need to fashion a new consensus with these powers on issues of legitimacy, sovereignty and governance.