In this Book
- The Origins of Capitalism and the "Rise of the West"
- Book
- 2008
- Published by: Temple University Press
summary
In this study, Eric Mielants provides a novel interdisciplinary interpretation of the origins of modernity and capitalism in particular. He argues that contrary to popular thinking, the Rise of the West should not be analyzed in terms of the Industrial Revolution or the colonization of the New World, but viewed from long-term developments that occurred in the Middle Ages. A fascinating overview of different civilizations in East Asia, South Asia, and Northwestern Africa is provided and systematically compared and contrasted with Western Europe. This book addresses some of the major debates that have recently unfolded in world history, comparative sociology, political economy, sociological theory and historical sociology. Mielants indicates how many existing theories (such as Marxism, World-Systems Theory and Smithian Modernization Theory) have suffered from either Eurocentric or limited temporal and spatial analyses, which prevents them from a complete understanding of why the origins of capitalism and citizenship emerged in Western Europe.
Table of Contents
Additional Information
ISBN
9781592135776
Related ISBN(s)
9781592135752, 9781592135769
MARC Record
OCLC
229432856
Pages
255
Launched on MUSE
2012-01-01
Language
English
Open Access
No
Copyright
2008