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The Decline and Rise of Democracy
- A Global History from Antiquity to Today
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 11 hrs and 34 mins
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The Decline and Rise of Democracy
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Publisher's summary
Historical accounts of democracy's rise tend to focus on ancient Greece and pre-Renaissance Europe. The Decline and Rise of Democracy draws from global evidence to show that the story is much richer - democratic practices were present in many places at many other times. David Stasavage makes the case that understanding how and where these democracies flourished - and when and why they declined - can provide crucial information not just about the history of governance, but about the ways modern democracies work and where they could manifest in the future.
Drawing from examples spanning several millennia, Stasavage first considers why states developed either democratic or autocratic styles of governance and argues that early democracy tended to develop in small places with a weak state and, counterintuitively, simple technologies. When central state institutions (such as a tax bureaucracy) were absent - as in medieval Europe - rulers needed consent from their populace to govern. When central institutions were strong - as in China or the Middle East - consent was less necessary and autocracy more likely. He then explores the transition from early to modern democracy, which first took shape in England and then the United States, illustrating that modern democracy arose as an effort to combine popular control with a strong state over a large territory.
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World-Systems Analysis: An Introduction
- A John Hope Franklin Center Book
- By: Immanuel Wallerstein
- Narrated by: Fred Filbrich
- Length: 4 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 97
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 77
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 78
In World-Systems Analysis, Immanuel Wallerstein provides a concise and accessible introduction to the comprehensive approach that he pioneered 30 years ago to understanding the history and development of the modern world. Since Wallerstein first developed world-systems analysis, it has become a widely utilized methodology within the historical social sciences and a common point of reference in discussions of globalization.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Uneven, but Ambitious
- By Logical Paradox on 08-27-14
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The Great Leveler
- Violence and the History of Inequality from the Stone Age to the Twenty-First Century
- By: Walter Scheidel
- Narrated by: Joel Richards
- Length: 17 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 292
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 245
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 243
Are mass violence and catastrophes the only forces that can seriously decrease economic inequality? To judge by thousands of years of history, the answer is yes. Tracing the global history of inequality from the Stone Age to today, Walter Scheidel shows that inequality never dies peacefully. Inequality declines when carnage and disaster strike and increases when peace and stability return. The Great Leveler is the first book to chart the crucial role of violent shocks in reducing inequality over the full sweep of human history around the world.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Content is not suitable for an Audiobook
- By Varun on 02-10-18
By: Walter Scheidel
-
How Europe Underdeveloped Africa
- By: Walter Rodney, Angela Y. Davis - foreword
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 13 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 523
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 443
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 434
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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4 out of 5 stars
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A Superb must read for everyone
- By Joy on 04-16-19
By: Walter Rodney, and others
-
The Mystery of Capital
- Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else
- By: Hernando de Soto
- Narrated by: Bob Souer
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 139
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 120
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 118
"The hour of capitalism's greatest triumph," writes Hernando de Soto, "is, in the eyes of four-fifths of humanity, its hour of crisis." In The Mystery of Capital, the world-famous Peruvian economist takes up one of the most pressing questions the world faces today: Why do some countries succeed at capitalism while others fail?
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5 out of 5 stars
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Good global perspective on Capitalism
- By Nellie boi on 05-29-21
By: Hernando de Soto
-
Medieval Europe
- By: Chris Wickham
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 14 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,270
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,108
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,099
The millennium between the breakup of the western Roman Empire and the Reformation was a long and hugely transformative period - one not easily chronicled within a single book. Yet distinguished historian Chris Wickham has taken up the challenge in this landmark book, and he succeeds in producing the most riveting account of medieval Europe in a generation.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wow! Outstanding Work on the Period
- By Dane Maralason on 01-15-19
By: Chris Wickham
-
The Habsburg Empire
- A New History
- By: Pieter M. Judson
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 18 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 367
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 315
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 314
Rejecting fragmented histories of nations in the making, this bold revision surveys the shared institutions that bridged difference and distance to bring stability and meaning to the far-flung empire. By supporting new schools, law courts, and railroads along with scientific and artistic advances, the Habsburg monarchs sought to anchor their authority in the cultures and economies of Central Europe. A rising standard of living throughout the empire deepened the legitimacy of Habsburg rule.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Ideal for students of empires, nationalism, minorities and ethnic groups
- By Uther on 02-11-17
By: Pieter M. Judson
-
The Dawn of Everything
- A New History of Humanity
- By: David Graeber, David Wengrow
- Narrated by: Mark Williams
- Length: 24 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,770
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,323
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,312
A trailblazing account of human history, challenging our most fundamental assumptions about social evolution—from the development of agriculture and cities to the emergence of "the state", political violence, and social inequality—and revealing new possibilities for human emancipation.
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5 out of 5 stars
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exactly what I've been looking for
- By DankTurtle on 11-10-21
By: David Graeber, and others
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Blood Oil
- Tyrants, Violence, and the Rules That Run the World
- By: Leif Wenar
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 20 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 101
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 94
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 94
Natural resources empower the world's most coercive men. Autocrats like Putin and the Saudis spend oil money on weapons and repression. ISIS and Congo's militias spend resource money on atrocities and ammunition. For decades resource-fueled authoritarians and extremists have forced endless crises on the West - and the ultimate source of their resource money is us, paying at the gas station and the mall.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Caveat: Human beings -- Totally untrustworthy
- By lost the power cord could you send me another cord address 13 east wilmont ave somers point nj 08244 on 05-17-16
By: Leif Wenar
-
The World
- A Brief Introduction
- By: Richard Haass
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 447
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 356
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 356
The World is designed to provide listeners of any age and experience with the essential background and building blocks they need to make sense of this complicated and interconnected world. It will empower them to manage the flood of daily news. Listeners will become more informed, discerning citizens, better able to arrive at sound, independent judgments. While it is impossible to predict what the next crisis will be or where it will originate, those who listen to The World will have what they need to understand its basics and the principal choices for how to respond.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent Primer for young adults
- By Howells on 05-24-20
By: Richard Haass
-
A Short History of Ireland, 1500-2000
- By: John Gibney
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 9 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 163
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 147
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 146
Five centuries of Irish history are explored in this informative and accessible volume. John Gibney proceeds from the beginning of Ireland’s modern period and continues through to virtually the present day, offering an integrated overview of the island nation’s cultural, political, and socioeconomic history. This succinct, scholarly study covers important historical events, including the Cromwellian conquest and settlement, the Great Famine, and the struggle for Irish independence.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
A great introduction to modern Irish history
- By Clint on 05-23-22
By: John Gibney
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Colonialism
- A Moral Reckoning
- By: Nigel Biggar
- Narrated by: Matt Bates
- Length: 12 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 55
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
In the wake of the dissolution of the Soviet empire in 1989, many believed that we had arrived at the ‘End of History’—that the global dominance of liberal democracy had been secured forever. Now, however, with Russia rattling its sabre on the borders of Europe and China rising to challenge the post-1945 world order, the liberal West faces major threats. These threats are not only external. Especially in the Anglosphere, the ‘decolonisation’ movement corrodes the West’s self-confidence by retelling the history of European and American colonial dominance.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Outstanding Report on one of the greatest empires ever.
- By mcasteli on 02-22-23
By: Nigel Biggar
-
The People vs. Democracy
- Why Our Freedom Is in Danger and How to Save It
- By: Yascha Mounk
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 205
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 172
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 171
The world is in turmoil. From India to Turkey and from Poland to the United States, authoritarian populists have seized power. As a result democracy itself may now be at risk. Two core components of liberal democracy - individual rights and the popular will - are at war with each other. As the role of money in politics soared and important issues were taken out of public contestation, a system of "rights without democracy" took hold. Populists who rail against this say they want to return power to the people. But in practice they create a system of "democracy without rights."
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1 out of 5 stars
-
Not worth it
- By DailyShopper on 06-07-18
By: Yascha Mounk
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The Great Degeneration
- How Institutions Decay and Economies Die
- By: Niall Ferguson
- Narrated by: Paul Slack
- Length: 4 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 291
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 248
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 247
Best-selling author and world-renowned historian Niall Ferguson has won widespread acclaim for thought-provoking works such as Civilization and High Financier. The Great Degeneration tackles nothing less than the decline of Western civilization. Ferguson posits that slowing growth, outrageous debt, and antisocial behavior are contributing to the erosion of the West’s once rock-solid foundations. Ferguson excavates the causes and shows how heroic leadership and radical reform are needed to right the course.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Superb as always!
- By Ivanhoe on 08-28-17
By: Niall Ferguson
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The Revenge of Geography
- What the Map Tells Us About Coming Conflicts and the Battle Against Fate
- By: Robert D. Kaplan
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 13 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 734
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 638
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 637
In The Revenge of Geography, Robert D. Kaplan builds on the insights, discoveries, and theories of great geographers and geopolitical thinkers of the near and distant past to look back at critical pivots in history and then to look forward at the evolving global scene. Kaplan traces the history of the world's hot spots by examining their climates, topographies, and proximities to other embattled lands.
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2 out of 5 stars
-
Painful to listen to
- By Bookworm on 12-27-13
By: Robert D. Kaplan
-
China in the 21st Century, 3rd Edition
- What Everyone Needs to Know
- By: Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom, Maura Elizabeth Cunningham
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 5 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 58
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 48
In this fully revised and updated third edition, Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom and Maura Elizabeth Cunningham provide cogent answers to urgent questions regarding the world's newest superpower and offer a framework for understanding China's meteoric rise from developing country to superpower. Framing their answers through the historical legacies that largely define China's present-day trajectory, Wasserstrom and Cunningham introduce listeners to the Chinese Communist Party, the building boom in Shanghai, and the environmental fallout of rapid Chinese industrialization.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Amazing!
- By Anonymous User on 07-11-20
By: Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom, and others
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The fall of the Roman Empire has long been considered one of the greatest disasters in history. But in this groundbreaking book, Walter Scheidel argues that Rome's dramatic collapse was actually the best thing that ever happened, clearing the path for Europe's economic rise and the creation of the modern age. Ranging across the entire premodern world, Escape from Rome offers new answers to some of the biggest questions in history: Why did the Roman Empire appear? Why did nothing like it ever return to Europe? And, above all, why did Europeans come to dominate the world?
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What listeners say about The Decline and Rise of Democracy
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Frank
- 12-22-20
Informative
The book is very informative, but seems to be unnecessarily long. I enjoyed learning about the proto-democracies, especially those in pre-columbian Americas. I also learned that I've been calling the Domesday Book by the wrong name.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Broken Luck
- 07-19-21
No Substitute for the Book
Fails to convey the vitality of scholarship in the book. The narratiion emphasizes the idea of liberalism with such force ("leader" is read throughout with an air of disdain) that the author's meaning gets overlooked.
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Overall1 out of 5 stars
-
Performance1 out of 5 stars
-
Story1 out of 5 stars
- Michael K
- 06-18-21
Not what I expected
This is not a history of the idea and practice of democracy. It is a very, very overly detailed correlation between the presence of various civilizing factors (farming, soil type, presence of writing, taxation) and what the author describes are early democracy. The latter is simply when citizens have some say about how they are governed, whether that be just being able to voice concerns to a "king" or similar leader. So it is really not about democracy per se. Unfortunately the author never really analyzes exactly what he means by democracy is any satisfying way.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Rose
- 06-01-21
History of the world
The audiobook was mainly focused on the history of the world and facts that have occurred than on the rise and fall of democracies, but it was still educational.
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