Why America Is Not a New Rome

Why America Is Not a New Rome
Author :
Publisher : MIT Press
Total Pages : 239
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780262288293
ISBN-13 : 026228829X
Rating : 4/5 (29X Downloads)

Book Synopsis Why America Is Not a New Rome by : Vaclav Smil

Download or read book Why America Is Not a New Rome written by Vaclav Smil and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2010-01-29 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An investigation of the America-Rome analogy that goes deeper than the facile comparisons made on talk shows and in glossy magazine articles. America's post–Cold War strategic dominance and its pre-recession affluence inspired pundits to make celebratory comparisons to ancient Rome at its most powerful. Now, with America no longer perceived as invulnerable, engaged in protracted fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, and suffering the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, comparisons are to the bloated, decadent, ineffectual later Empire. In Why America Is Not a New Rome, Vaclav Smil looks at these comparisons in detail, going deeper than the facile analogy-making of talk shows and glossy magazine articles. He finds profound differences. Smil, a scientist and a lifelong student of Roman history, focuses on several fundamental concerns: the very meaning of empire; the actual extent and nature of Roman and American power; the role of knowledge and innovation; and demographic and economic basics—population dynamics, illness, death, wealth, and misery. America is not a latter-day Rome, Smil finds, and we need to understand this in order to look ahead without the burden of counterproductive analogies. Superficial similarities do not imply long-term political, demographic, or economic outcomes identical to Rome's.


Why America Is Not a New Rome Related Books

Why America Is Not a New Rome
Language: en
Pages: 239
Authors: Vaclav Smil
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 2010-01-29 - Publisher: MIT Press

GET EBOOK

An investigation of the America-Rome analogy that goes deeper than the facile comparisons made on talk shows and in glossy magazine articles. America's post–C
Are We Rome?
Language: en
Pages: 272
Authors: Cullen Murphy
Categories: Political Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2008-05-05 - Publisher: HMH

GET EBOOK

What went wrong in imperial Rome, and how we can avoid it: “If you want to understand where America stands in the world today, read this.” —Thomas E. Rick
Empires of Trust
Language: en
Pages: 360
Authors: Thomas F. Madden
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 2008 - Publisher: Penguin

GET EBOOK

MADDEN/EMPIRES OF TRUST
Ancient Rome and Modern America
Language: en
Pages: 312
Authors: Margaret Malamud
Categories: Literary Criticism
Type: BOOK - Published: 2009-03-30 - Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

GET EBOOK

Ancient Rome and Modern America explores the vital role thenarratives and images of Rome have played in America’sunderstanding of itself and its history. Plac
First Principles
Language: en
Pages: 266
Authors: Thomas E. Ricks
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 2020-11-10 - Publisher: HarperCollins

GET EBOOK

New York Times Bestseller Editors' Choice —New York Times Book Review "Ricks knocks it out of the park with this jewel of a book. On every page I learned some