Imperial Germany and the Industrial Revolution - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0887388353 ISBN 13: 9780887388354

Publisher: Routledge, 1990

Synopsis

Although Imperial Germany was begun before the United States entered World War I, little in the book however relates to that particular conflict. Rather, this is in large part a study of the divergencies in cultural development between the English-speaking peoples and the German-speaking peoples, and of the consequences this produced in economic and social spheres. Suppressed by war censors, Imperial Germany was again released after the war, and has assumed a place as a major contribution to economics and sociology alike.

The comments on the book have scarcely been altered by time. Charles A. Beard noted that "Veblen wrote for the centuries, not for the days, and his Imperial Germany ranks with his immortal Theory of Business Enterprise." Wesley C. Mitchell, reflecting on the book during World War II, wrote that "the natural causes that made Imperial Germany efficient are still at work under the Nazi regime, and the forecast that proved sound once may do so again." Lewis Mumford called Imperial Germany "still the best picture of the residual barbarisms in German civilization; the soil out of which Nazism grew."

This new edition is graced with a brilliant and insightful opening essay that is at once a commentary on Veblen's volume, and a statement of the historic status of the German economy and society. Written by Otto G. Mayer, director in a leading German "Think Tank," HWWA-Institut fur Wirtschaftsforschung-Hamburg, editor of Intereconomics, a journal issued in English, and an author of major policy statements on economic and social issues, the new opening statement underscores the view of those who came before, that Veblen's book is "a treasure chest of knowledge."

About this title

From the Back Cover:

One of the great thinkers of the early 20th century, American economist and sociologist THORSTEIN BUNDE VEBLEN (1857-1929) is best remembered for coining the phrase "conspicuous consumption" and, in this 1915 work, explaining how the stage was set for something like the Third Reich in Germany decades before its appearance.

Veblen describes:

* how the pagan past of the Germans gave rise to their modern character * how Germany's appropriation of industrial technology limited its cultural growth * how a medieval perspective endured in Germany into its imperial era * how the dominance of Prussia impacted Germany as a whole * and more.

ALSO FROM COSIMO: Veblen's The Vested Interests and the Common Man, The Theory of Business Enterprise, and An Inquiry into the Nature of Peace and the Terms of Its Perpetuation

About the Author:

Thorstein Veblen (1857-1929) was perhaps the most famous American economist and social critic of his time. He taught at the universities of Chicago and Missouri, Stanford University, and the New School for Social Research. His many books include The Theory of Business Enterprise, The Higher Learning in America, and The Theory of the Leisure Class, all available from Transaction.

About this edition

• Publisher: Routledge
• Publication date: 1990
• ISBN 10: 0887388353
• ISBN 13: 9780887388354
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 388
• Editor: Veblen Thorstein