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The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 22 hrs and 34 mins
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Publisher's summary
Virtually all human societies were once organized tribally, yet over time most developed new political institutions that included a central state that could keep the peace and uniform laws that applied to all citizens. Some went on to create governments that were accountable to their constituents. We take these institutions for granted, but they are absent or unable to function in many of today’s developing countries—with often disastrous consequences for the rest of the world.
Francis Fukuyama, author of the best-selling The End of History and The Last Man, and one of our most important political thinkers, provides a sweeping account of how today’s basic political institutions developed.
The first of a major two-volume work, The Origins of Political Order begins with politics among our primate ancestors and follows the story through the emergence of tribal societies, the growth of the first modern state in China, the beginning of the rule of law in India and the Middle East, and the development of political accountability in Europe up until the eve of the French Revolution.
Drawing on a vast body of knowledge—history, evolutionary biology, archaeology, and economics—Fukuyama has produced a brilliant, provocative work that offers fresh insights on the origins of democratic societies and raises essential questions about the nature of politics and its discontents.
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Since its formation in 1861, Italy has struggled to develop an effective political system and a secure sense of national identity. Christopher Duggan's acclaimed introduction charts the country's history from the fall of the Roman Empire in the West to the present day, and surveys the difficulties Italy has faced during the last two centuries in creating a unified country. Duggan successfully weaves together political, economic, social and cultural history, and stresses the alternation between materialist and idealist programs for forging a nation-state.
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Concise indeed
- By nikex on 03-22-21
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How Civilizations Die (and Why Islam Is Dying Too)
- By: David Goldman
- Narrated by: Tom Weiner
- Length: 8 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Past and present civilizations failed and fail for many reasons, but the number-one predictor of a civilization’s survival is its sense of religion—or lack thereof. So argues David Goldman in How Civilizations Die (and Why Islam Is Dying Too). The strength of a civilization’s religion affects its purpose, its fertility rate, and ultimately, its fate, says Goldman—who then argues that, contrary to popular belief, Islamic countries are in the last throes of death while Christian America is in a position to flourish.
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Pseudointellectual Clickbait
- By Sam on 12-22-20
By: David Goldman
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When China Rules the World
- The End of the Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order
- By: Martin Jacques
- Narrated by: Scott Peterson
- Length: 16 hrs and 33 mins
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According to even the most conservative estimates, China will overtake the United States as the world's largest economy by 2027 and will ascend to the position of world economic leader by 2050. But the full repercussions of China's ascendancy-for itself and the rest of the globe-have been surprisingly little explained or understood.
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Lucid explanation of global economic trends
- By David Blake on 01-04-10
By: Martin Jacques
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The Kurds: The History of the Middle Eastern Ethnic Group and Their Quest for Kurdistan
- By: Charles River Editors
- Narrated by: Colin Fluxman
- Length: 1 hr and 20 mins
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The Kurds: The History of the Middle Eastern Ethnic Group and Their Quest for Kurdistan examines the group and the contentious issues surrounding them. By delving deeper into their ethnic, religious, and political history, it is possible to understand the larger issues of statelessness and the striving for independence. At the same time, the relationships between the Kurds and the ruling regimes of the day have changed and altered the political landscape in the Middle East.
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Brief Historical Account but lacks depth.
- By Shadow Kurdi on 02-21-22
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The Balkans [Modern Library Chronicles]
- By: Mark Mazower
- Narrated by: Robert O'Keefe
- Length: 6 hrs and 24 mins
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In this fascinating work, winner of the Wolfson Prize for History Mark Mazower uncovers the history of the Balkans with detail and clarity. He explores the reasons for current conflicts and examines the Balkans as a religious, cultural, and economic melting pot for Europe and Asia. Through Robert O'Keefe's articulate narration, listeners will be absorbed by this rich world.
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Thorough History...
- By David on 09-30-05
By: Mark Mazower
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A People’s History of the World
- From the Stone Age to the New Millennium
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- Narrated by: Napoleon Ryan
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Chris Harman describes the shape and course of human history as a narrative of ordinary people forming and re-forming complex societies in pursuit of common human goals. Interacting with the forces of technological change as well as the impact of powerful individuals and revolutionary ideas, these societies have engendered events familiar to every schoolchild-from the empires of antiquity to the world wars of the 20th century. In a bravura conclusion, Chris Harman exposes the reductive complacency of contemporary capitalism.
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Oh God avoid
- By Robert on 03-28-18
By: Chris Harman
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Russia in Revolution
- An Empire in Crisis, 1890 to 1928
- By: S. A. Smith
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
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The Russian Revolution of 1917 transformed the face of the Russian empire, politically, economically, socially, and culturally and also profoundly affected the course of world history for the rest of the 20th century. Historian S. A. Smith presents a panoramic account of the history of the Russian empire, from the last years of the 19th century, through the First World War and the revolutions of 1917 and the establishment of the Bolshevik regime, to the end of the 1920s.
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Excellent centenary look at the complete revolutio
- By Privet on 09-13-18
By: S. A. Smith
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Asabiyyah
- What Ibn Khaldun, the Islamic Father of Social Science, Can Teach Us About the World Today
- By: Ed West
- Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
- Length: 1 hr and 25 mins
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A quarter of a century after the end of Communism swept away the ideological conflict of the "short 20th century", a new world is once again taking shape, this time in the Middle East. But what does the crisis in the region, and its refugee exodus into Europe, signify for the future of the world? And why has the noble dream of nation-building failed? Focusing mainly on religion, ideology or economics, most analysis ignored one crucial factor: asabiyyah, or group feeling, something outlined six and a half centuries ago.
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good contrast
- By Antonio on 09-05-16
By: Ed West
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The Sovereign Individual
- Mastering the Transition to the Information Age
- By: James Dale Davidson, Peter Thiel - preface, William Rees-Mogg
- Narrated by: Michael David Axtell
- Length: 19 hrs and 20 mins
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Two renowned investment advisors and authors of the best seller The Great Reckoning bring to light both currents of disaster and the potential for prosperity and renewal in the face of radical changes in human history as we move into the next century. The Sovereign Individual details strategies necessary for adapting financially to the next phase of Western civilization.
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Unfortunately distopian for mosty of humanity
- By Phil on 09-29-20
By: James Dale Davidson, and others
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How Europe Underdeveloped Africa
- By: Walter Rodney, Angela Y. Davis - foreword
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 13 hrs and 21 mins
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Guyanese intellectual Walter Rodney emerged as one of the leading thinkers and activists of the anticolonial revolution. In 1980, shortly after founding of the Working People's Alliance in Guyana, the 38-year-old Rodney would be assassinated. In his magnum opus, Rodney incisively argues that grasping "the great divergence" between the West and the rest can only be explained as the exploitation of the latter by the former. This meticulously researched analysis of the repercussions of European colonialism in Africa remains an indispensable study for grasping global inequality today.
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A Superb must read for everyone
- By Joy on 04-16-19
By: Walter Rodney, and others
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Content is not suitable for an Audiobook
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To an extraordinary extent we continue to live in the shadow of the classical world. At every level, from languages to calendars to political systems, we are the descendants of a “classical Europe,” using frames of reference created by ancient Mediterranean cultures. As this consistently fresh and surprising new audio book makes clear, however, this was no less true for the inhabitants of those classical civilizations themselves, whose myths, history, and buildings were an elaborate engagement with an already old and revered past - one filled with great leaders and writers....
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Excellent overview of the Classical World
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What listeners say about The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution
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- Steve Pagano
- 10-05-15
Few forests, but lots of trees
When I taught at university level, I quickly discovered how few academics knew how to explain anything concisely. They are asked a question, or the state a goal for their discussion, and proceed to give an answer that may technically be correct, but is not very helpful to the listener.
This the exact sort of feel I got from this book. Fukuyama promises a book about the origins of political structures in general, but instead presents us a book loaded with extraneous (albeit probably accurate) details, so much so that any sort of generalization that he wants to draw attention to get lost in the trees. After some preliminary information about biology and prehistory (which is written well), the author launches into an hours-long description of China, including many, *many* details about the country, its people, and its history, and the evolution of its government. Great if I wanted to know all about China and its governmental history, but not so good if I am looking for something more succinct and generalizeable. If Fukuyama tried drawing any sort of general principle out of this whole discussion, I missed it, buried among tons of details. Where's the focus?
The author then continues this pattern with India and then the Ottoman Empire, heaping on the detail while obfuscating his main points.
I did find some of the detail very interesting, I'll admit, and he does a pretty good job at presenting some of the topics. For example, his discussion of slave armies is very good indeed, as is his discussion of religion on the Indian subcontinent and how it affected the formation of some parts of government.
But in the end, I got tired of slogging through all the unfocused detail, which in the end led me to stop listening about 75% of the way through.
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- blah
- 05-12-13
Best Summary of Political History I've Read
This book is simply amazing. As a political science major in college and graduate school, I've read a ton of histories and evaluations of politics but nothing comes close to this work. Fukuyama writes a complete and thorough analysis of human politics that is full of in depth case studies and insightful information. I would definitely recomend this book not only to poli sci students but also anyone wishing to know the origins of our political order.
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- John Robert BEHRMAN
- 03-16-16
I learned a lot, but was ultimately unsatisfied
NOTE that this is largely the same as my review for the other book - Political Order and Political Decay.
I came at this book hoping for a argument supporting a general theory of political development. I did not get that. Instead, this book asserts at the start a sort of theory of political development ('three core institutions'), and uses it to tie together and compare a bunch of stories about political development.
Fukuyama asserts early in the book three 'core institutions' of political order - a strong state, rule of law, and accountable government. It is hard to actually extract what the precise theory is, aside from "having these institutions is good."
The advantage of this approach is that I learned a lot about the various countries used as case studies. These 'basic in China, India, the Egyptian and Ottoman Empires, and European political development. This core institution framework is actually a pretty good model for describing big themes in the history of countries and then comparing them.
The disadvantage of this is that I didn't get what I wanted from the book, and was vaguely insulted by how it was presented. I learned facts; I wanted theory. I learned what did happen; I wanted a tool to help me think about what is going to happen. The book is deeply disappointing on this score.
Finally, there are a few other things that nagged me throughout this book:
- It is one half of a book. It is not complete without the other half, Political Order and Political Decay. Not only that, but much of the argument in this book is presented as a prequel to the big reveal of the theory of political decay in the following volume. Not a big deal, but it does involve a 48 hour plus listening commitment.
- There are several places, mostly in political philosophy, where I found his descriptions of other authors' theories to be wildly off the mark. His 'state of nature' section misses the intent and purpose of those arguments. He similarly misses the point on Malthus. I, personally, found these infuriating; but I can see passing by them if that's not your particular flame to wonk about.
- There are several bad habits of speech, writing, and thought that are consistent throughout the book. They wouldn't be so bad after a seven hour book - after a total of 48 hours they grated heavily. Specifically, Dr. Fukuyama failed to exercise proper discipline on his use of the world fail; his often frequent use of some unneccessary caveats may have contributed to the partial watering-down of his theories, and his used a high level of quantitative descriptions without a corresponding description of what the levels mean.
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- Mr Conway
- 01-24-12
The best political history I've ever read
I have only good things to say about this book and it's narration. Fukuyama sets out to write a history of Political order and the developments of the core parts of the state and achieves this goal definitively.
I thought the pace was excellent, as was the narrative progression. It moved freely yet logically between the micro and the macro perspectives. It even manages aptly walk the line between too much and too little background information for the various topics, institutions and regions, which could not have been easy given the subject's breadth.
For me, this was one of the books that subtly adjust my understanding of not just the subject matter on the page, but also of a range of other areas and disciplines as well.
I HIghly recommend this book to anyone interested in Politics, History, or virtually any other area of Non-Fiction.
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- steve
- 01-03-12
To Comprehend the Future, Contemplate the Past
As life unfolds on our planet, I think it's important to remember that the human experience is, and always has been, an experiment in-progress. As with all experiments, there is no guarantee of success. Since 1947, the year I was born, the world has changed nearly beyond comprehension. Lately, I have wondered if things have developed more rapidly than our ability to manage them. If we can no longer effectively manage our ever more complex world, then chaos can't be far behind. And, it appears, that could be in the offing.
Human progress over the centuries has been a blood-sport. Social reforms have frequently come as a result of war pushing out the olde to make room for the new. The establishment tends to not let go easily.
But this book suggests a new possibility for change, more in keeping with our maturing as a thought-directed species. By comparatively analyzing the dynamics of past and present cultures, recognizing that the actual development, or lack thereof, of governance has been influenced by many extraneous factors, common principles can be gleaned from the data that can help guide us in making pre-emptive changes, hopefully before the current order falls apart.
Professor, political scientist, economist and author Francis Fukuyama is an ambitious fellow. He apparently believes that we've reached a sufficient point in our mental and social development to begin learning from our collective past, and we can now use this comprehensive "enlightenment" to create a better world. What a concept!
As we casually ignore nature's championing of survival-of-the-fittest, and the degeneration of our species that naturally results, there needs to be some balancing activity on the other end of the spectrum. Using the kind of information contained in this book to do some 'Steve Jobs'-type engineering, that's right- social engineering (sorry, Newt), we should be able to come up with a system that encourages innovation, rewards free enterprise AND liberates Everyman from the stranglehold of the special interests of the new Global Corporate economy. Wouldn’t that be nice?
Mr. Fukuyama is not perfect (It's reported he voted for Obama, at least in part as protest for the devastation caused by 8 years of George "W" – understood), but in my opinion, this is a seminal work. I searched before ordering this book to see if there was anything else like it. If there is, I couldn't find it.
He's not, as far as I can determine, pro-left or pro-right. If he's pro anything, he's pro-science. Do the research, ascertain the facts and let the results fall where they may. There is a right way and a wrong way to do things. If we can wrench this subject away from the greedy sort who want to keep everything they have while grabbing for more, I think most of the rest of us will agree on the results. We are, after all, ancestrally connected. The majority of us all want the same things. If we base our method of trying to attain our common objectives on an understanding of the several millenia of history that is available to us, I think we'll have a much better chance of getting what we all want. Or we can just let it collapse, which it appears to be headed for doing.
Two thumbs way up - regardless of what "Lame" says. (Didn't quite get what that was all about.)
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- Luke
- 01-24-13
Compelling historical narrative of state formation
What did you love best about The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution?
Fukuyama begins by describing pre-state human social groups--and human biology--to be used as a foundation for the rest of his compelling theory for how states are formed--or rather were formed in history. His historical account of the development of states in China, India, the Ottoman empire, and Europe demonstrates that the road of state formation varies greatly, and is not at all purely progressive. The outcome of state formation is also varied (as we can see in the modern world).
If nothing else, the first half of this book is a great overview of the development of different societies. Fascinating. And really not dry.
Fukuyama is just detailed enough to make his theories convincing, one being that central components for a modern political state as we see in Western democracies require: a strong state, the rule of law, and state accountability to all citizens. Many states have one or more of these things, but every modern political order must have them all.
His whole book is a build up to an upcoming second volume which will describe why in modern times state formation can proceed more directly and purposely than it has in history: with so much violence and suffering.This first volume is interesting, but is not directly relevant for understanding the workings of modern states we currently live in. Such insight I believe will come in the next volume. Still, a fascinating read!
What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?
This is a narrative--the author's narrative--of how states formed in history. And it reads like a narrative. It's not exactly a light read, but the strong narrative aspects make it a very compelling read.
What does Jonathan Davis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Davis narration is very clear with perfect pronunciation of works in other languages (well, as far as I can tell). His pace is great and his emphasis of works in sentences actually helps in understanding what Fukuyama is saying.
What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?
Fukuyam's insight of the pre-conditions for a modern liberal capitalist state is convincing and based not just on his historical research, but a solid socio-political philosophy as well.
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- SAMA
- 06-23-13
A Good Investment of a Credit
If you could sum up The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution in three words, what would they be?
Brief history of politics.
If you’ve listened to books by Francis Fukuyama before, how does this one compare?
This is the first time.
Which scene was your favorite?
There are scenes?
Any additional comments?
This audiobook is an interesting, educational look at some of the biggest political developments in history. It tries to see things in each era and under each political system in the way that an average person during that era would see it. It provides perspective, but ultimately feels like it compares every system with democracy. Granted, it isn't a big deal, but I enjoy my books to be unbiased, and this one is pretty much unbiased.
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- Gary
- 09-02-14
Always fun to learn about China, India and Islam
The author does a definitive survey of political development through out the world while avoiding the ODTAA ("one dang thing after another") trap survey books of this kind can often fall into. This kind of information often pops up in many of the books I read, but is never covered as a primary topic nor as definitively as this author covers this topic. Usually, it's hard to get a good description of the political history of Islam, India and China, and most authors force the story into their comic book characterization narrative of those societies so that it will fit into their narrative so that they can show the supposed superiority of the West. This book doesn't do that whatsoever and gives each region it's full due respect.
The author not only looks at each major civilization and parts thereof as an end in itself but will contrast it with the familiar when needed.
Political systems need three things in order to prosper fully: accountability, transparency, and "rule of law". All three aren't necessary, but each sure do help. The earliest systems start with a "kin and friend" system and develops from there. The author steps the reader through the process and how it differs depending on the civilization.
The author shows that Rousseau (man is perfect until government corrupts him) is wrong about everything, Hobbes (government is only to protect against violent acts) only gives a barely adequate government, and Locke (live, liberty and pursuit of property) gives the most responsive government, and the author shows how these stages can develop or never existed in this first place as in the worldview of Rousseau for the different societies studied in this book.
The author speaks with authority on the topic and this book filled in a lot of holes on the topic that I got from reading other books which never fully developed the topic.
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- Binder
- 12-30-11
Insightful
Where does The Origins of Political Order from Pre-human Times to the French Revolution rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
Near the top, for its informed analysis.
What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?
It contextualizes our present political problems
What about Jonathan Davis’s performance did you like?
Its harmony to the narrative.
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- Jake
- 07-06-12
Difficult to Listen Attentively
Any additional comments?
This may be a book that has to be read. I just could not listen to this book. Complex ideas, layered theses, and a constant influx of new names--combined with Davis's narration--left me rewinding over and over. Eventually, I gave up. My "story" rating is unfair, as I only got a few hours in. Davis's style is great in Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World, but it does not match up well with Fukuyama's writing. In fairness, though, I'm not sure anyone else could do any better. Buy this one in print.
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