
Civilization and Its Contents
Bruce Mazlish(Author)
Stanford University Press
Published on 18. January 2005
Book
Hardback
208 pages
978-0-8047-5082-0 (ISBN)
Description
"Civilization" is a constantly invoked term. It is used by both politicians and scholars. How useful, in fact, is this term? Civilization and Its Contents traces the origins of the concept in the eighteenth century. It shows its use as a colonial ideology, and then as a support for racism. The term was extended to a dead society, Egyptian civilization, and was appropriated by Japan, China, and Islamic countries. This latter development lays the groundwork for the contemporary call for a "dialogue of civilizations." The author proposes instead that today the use of the term "civilization" has a global meaning, with local variants recognized as cultures. It may be more appropriate, however, to abandon the name "civilization" and to focus on a new understanding of the civilizing process.
Reviews / Votes
"Written by a prominent public intellectual and historian of globalization, Civilization and Its Contents offers thought-provoking insights in a collection of seven well-integrated essays on the politics and historical trajectory of the concept of civilization." - Journal of World HistoryMore details
Edition
New edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Palo Alto
United States
Edition type
New edition
Product notice
Cloth
Dimensions
Height: 224 mm
Width: 167 mm
Thickness: 17 mm
Weight
336 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8047-5082-0 (9780804750820)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Bruce Mazlish
Civilization and Its Contents
E-Book
01/2005
Stanford University Press
€45.99
Available for download
Person
Bruce Mazlish is Professor of History Emeritus at the Massachuset Institute of Technology and Founding Director of the New Global History Initiative.
Content
Contents Preface--ix 1 The Origins and Importance of the Concept of Civilization--27 2 Civilization as Colonial Ideology--35 3 Civilization as European Ideology--35 4 The Civilizing Process--35 5 Other Civilizations--35 6 The Dialogue of Civilizations in a Global Epoch--35 7 Conclusions--35 Notes--155 Index--173