A century's journey : how the great powers shape the world / Stanley Hoffman [and others] ; edited by Robert A. Pastor.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Hoffmann, Stanley.

Pastor, Robert A.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

World politics--20th century.

World politics.

Great powers.

Physical Description:

x, 415 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Basic Books, 1999.

Summary:

In A Century's Journey, Robert A. Pastor and six other preeminent foreign policy scholars argue that the key to understanding the world's future lies in how the great powers shaped the twentieth century--from a world of conquest and exclusive spheres-of-influence to one of pluralism, market-driven openness and international institutions. In contrast to some proponents of concepts like globalization, "the clash of civilizations" and "democratic peace," the authors believe that nation-states remain the decisive actors on the international stage.

Pastor concludes in the book's final chapter that we have entered a "Liberal Epoch," the product of American strength and revolutionary vision that changed the goals of the powers--from seeking to build empires and cartels to responding to citizens and consumers. This is a unique moment in history both in terms of the world's openness and the fact that none of the great powers view another as a permanent enemy. The durability of the Liberal Epoch will depend on whether the United States can redefine its leadership, whether Russia and China can successfully navigate hazardous transitions to market-based democracies and whether the international system can devise more effective ways to enforce universal norms.

Contents:

1 The Great Powers in the Twentieth Century: From Dawn to Dusk / Robert A. Pastor 1

2 Great Britain: Decline and Recovery / Robert J. Lieber 33

3 France: Two Obsessions for One Century / Stanley Hoffmann 63

4 Germany: The Continuities from Frederick the Great to the Federal Republic / Josef Joffe 91

5 The Three Russias: Decline, Revolution, and Reconstruction / Robert Legvold 139

6 The United States: Divided by a Revolutionary Vision / Robert A. Pastor 191

7 Japan: Opportunism in the Pursuit of Power / Kenneth B. Pyle 239

8 China: A Tortuous Path onto the World's Stage / Michel Oksenberg 291

9 Looking Back and Forward: The Trajectories of the Great Powers / Robert A. Pastor 333.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 365-391) and index.

ISBN:

0465054757

OCLC:

42027425