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Sto caricando le informazioni... The Rise of Classes and Nation-states, 1760-1914di Michael Mann
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Appartiene alle SerieThe Sources of Social Power (Volume 2)
Distinguishing four sources of power in human societies - ideological, economic, military and political - The Sources of Social Power traces their interrelations throughout human history. This second volume deals with power relations between the Industrial Revolution and the First World War, focusing on France, Great Britain, Hapsburg Austria, Prussia/Germany and the United States. Based on considerable empirical research, it provides original theories of the rise of nations and nationalism, of class conflict, of the modern state and of modern militarism. While not afraid to generalize, it also stresses social and historical complexity. Michael Mann sees human society as 'a patterned mess' and attempts to provide a sociological theory appropriate to this, his final chapter giving an original explanation of the causes of the First World War. First published in 1993, this new edition of Volume 2 includes a new preface by the author examining the impact and legacy of the work. Non sono state trovate descrizioni di biblioteche |
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Google Books — Sto caricando le informazioni... GeneriSistema Decimale Melvil (DDC)303.3Social sciences Social Sciences; Sociology and anthropology Social Processes Coordination and control ; PowerClassificazione LCVotoMedia:
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But there's one problem: this book is really dull. When I read volume one I classified it as a difficult book because I got the feeling that I lacked the necessary background knowledge to appreciate the author's theorizing. But now, having read selected parts of this second volume, I realize that there's also something lacking in his writing. I can't exactly put my finger on what it is but I noticed that his theoretical framework is distressingly unclear. For example, he repeatedly refers to different state "crystallizations" without ever explaining what this physical metaphor is supposed to signify. He also relies heavily on Marxist class terminology such as "petite bourgeoisie". I'm sure Marxists could make the argument that it is a correct term for a certain social class in 19th century Europe, but it still becomes annoying when used over and over again. And I didn't know where to look up what a "sectional-segmental" organization is supposed to be, either. These are just a few examples of unclear terminology - I could give at least twenty more.
But in addition to the fact that the so-called "theories" presented in this book are to some extent just empty wordplay, the author also does not possess any particular talent for lucid presentation. His erudition is undeniable and he may have had a clear train of thought in his own mind when he wrote this book, but he failed to transfer it to the text. I constantly found my thoughts drifting away due to sheer boredom and I skipped some sections because I could see just by browsing that I wouldn't find them interesting. You really need a very clear overall plan if you're going to write an argument which is more than 800 pages long. I'm not sure what the plan for this book was, other than "I'm going to describe how economics, politics, ideology and war influenced societies in 19th century Europe". That is not clear enough.
The explanatory value of the author's conclusions is in my opinion not particularly high because so many of them are embedded in his flawed terminology of "crystallizations". But other readers might certainly enjoy his style more than I did. To be fair, I did like a couple of sections, for example the ones on taxation and revenue (p. 381-389), reasons why socialism did not succeed in the United States (p. 644-654) and the sociological analysis of the decisions that led to World War I which concludes the book. But in conclusion, while I salute the author for completing this ambitious project, I have no intention of ever reading volumes three and four.