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Introduction: Western Civilization in the Modern Era

Introduction: Western Civilization in the Modern Era. The End of History and the Last Man - Francis Fukuyama 1992.

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Introduction: Western Civilization in the Modern Era

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  1. Introduction: Western Civilization in the Modern Era

  2. The End of History and the Last Man- Francis Fukuyama 1992 The contemporary West at the end of the Cold War [1989] is “the end point of mankind's ideological evolution and the universalization of Western liberal democracy as the final form of human government.”

  3. We are the champions • Modern era rife w/ ideological conflict • End of Cold War means:- triumph of Liberalism- triumph of free markets (capitalism) • Western politics, ethics, economics achieve global dominance

  4. The “End” of History? • History for human reasons- human nature Greeks / Romans / Christians • We are a product of the age- stages (dialectic) Hegel • We are a product of larger forces- Marx

  5. A “sad” ending? • Maintaining, not expanding…- standard of living- ecology • No alternative but Nihilism…

  6. The essential, undeniable fact is that the West was the first civilization in history to focus attention on the individual and on freedom…we have committed crimes, but we have also caused the whole of mankind to take a gigantic step forward and to leave its childhood behind. The Betrayal of the West 1978 - Jacques Ellul

  7. I. The story so far… 200,000 BCE – Homo sapiens 50,000 BCE – intellectually “us” 8,000 BCE – agriculture 5,000 BCE – civilization 1200 BCE – sky gods/monotheism 500 BCE – 500 CE“Classical” civilization 500 – 1500 CE – Middle Ages

  8. II. The Roots of Modernity ca. 1500-1969 Collapse of Medieval Europe The Renaissance The Reformation

  9. A. Collapse of Medieval Europe 100 Years War Ecological Crisis Religious Controversy

  10. B. The Renaissance 1350-1650 Emphasis on human achievement - centrality of this life

  11. C. The Reformation Martin Luther / John Calvin Individual & salvation Nationalism & the state

  12. D. The Nation-State Decline in Church Primacy Exploration / colonization Market Revolution

  13. III. Era of Western Dominance Age of Revolutionsintellectual economic / ecological political

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