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The Origins of Political Order

From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution

By Francis Fukuyama

(2)

| Hardcover | 9780374227340

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Book Description

The evolving tension between private and public animates this magisterial history of the state. In his hominids-to-guillotines chronicle of humanity's attempts to build strong, accountable governments that adhere to the rule of law, international relations scholar Fukuyama (The End of History) advanContinue

The evolving tension between private and public animates this magisterial history of the state. In his hominids-to-guillotines chronicle of humanity's attempts to build strong, accountable governments that adhere to the rule of law, international relations scholar Fukuyama (The End of History) advances two themes: the effort to create an impersonal state free from family and tribal allegiances, and the struggle—often violent—against wealthy elites who capture the state and block critical reforms. Fukuyama's multifaceted comparative approach grounds politics and government in the demands of biology, geography, war, and economics, and pays appropriately lavish attention to China (he styles the Qin Dynasty of 221 B.C.E. the world's first modern state), India, and the Islamic countries. A neo-Hegelian, he's especially trenchant on the importance of ideology—especially religious beliefs—as an autonomous instigator of social and political change. (He cogently ascribes Europe's distinctively individualistic culture to the medieval Catholic Church's "assault on kinship.") Fukuyama writes a crystalline prose that balances engaging erudition with incisive analysis. As germane to the turmoil in Afghanistan as it is to today's congressional battles, this is that rare work of history with up-to-the-minute relevance.

Critics

  • The Origins of Political Order by Francis Fukuyama: review

    The Prime Minister once facetiously remarked that Afghanistan was never going to become Switzerland, although, arguably, its cantonal and federal structure might be a solution to Afghanistan’s social evils, even though it could never hope to match Sw ... (read full critics)

    telegraph.co.uk published on Tue, 31 May 2011

  • The Origins of Political Order by Francis Fukuyama

    For some 40 years, the American neo-conservative right has led an ever-more vehement crusade against the idea of the state. The aim has been to conflate the state with discredited socialism. The quest for a socialist utopia, runs the argument, has pr ... (read full critics)

    guardian.co.uk published on Sat, 21 May 2011

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Book Details

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  • English Books
  • Hardcover 608 Pages
  • Edition: 1
  • ISBN-10: 0374227349
  • ISBN-13: 9780374227340
  • Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
  • Pub date: Apr 12, 2011
  • Also available as: Paperback and Others
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