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Empire: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)
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Average Rating:  out of 3 Reviews
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Price: $11.95
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Sale: $5.73
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Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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EAN (European Article Number): 9780192802231
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Number of Items: 1
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Binding: Paperback
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Author: Stephen Howe
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Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
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Dewey Decimal Number: 325.3209
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Publication Date: 2002-11-28
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Reading Level: 160
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Description: A great deal of the world's history is the history of empires. Indeed it could be said that all history is colonial history, if one takes a broad enough definition and goes far enough back. And although the great historic imperial systems--the land-based Russian one as well as the seaborne empires of western European powers--have collapsed during the past half century, their legacies shape almost every aspect of life on a global scale. Meanwhile there is fierce argument, and much speculation, about what has replaced the old territorial empires in world politics. Do the United States and its allies, transnational companies, financial and media institutions, or more broadly the forces of "globalization", constitute a new imperial system? Stephen Howe interprets the meaning of the idea of "empire" through the ages, disentangling the multiple uses and abuses of the labels "empire" and "colonialism", etc., and examines the aftermath of imperialism on the contemporary world.
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Customer Reviews
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Review Summary: A very GOOD introduction |
Date: 2008-04-01 |
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Details: Kudos to author Stephen Howe for jamming so much solid info on empire and its related topics (such as imperialism, colonialism, decolonization, etc.) into a book that clocks in at under 130 pages. I've read three of these Very Short Introduction series books; they've all been good, and this one is the best so far in terms of readability and quality of information. Some of the books in this series can be surprisingly dense despite their slimness, but I found this one to be a quick read. Howe is probably better at raising questions than he is at giving final answers, but I don't think that's a bad thing -- this is a messy topic. Think of it as kind of a primer, and you won't be disappointed.
Howe does an excellent job of defining some of the terminology related to empire, which is no small task (not least because the terms are often so misused, confused, and/or politicized.) Much of the book consists of comparing and contrasting the different empires found throughout history. Admittedly, he spends more space discussing the modern (late-19th/early-20th century) European empires than he does land-based and/or ancient empires. If the book has a single 'weakness,' that's probably it -- though in order to bolster the sections about land-based and ancient empires, Howe would have had to break the 'Very Short Intro' format.
As someone who studied the British Empire in grad school, I was always intrigued by the idea of comparative studies on empires on a grand historical and global scale. However, there is surprisingly little comparative work done on empires out there -- doubly surprising when you consider that, in the grand sweep of human history, empires have been much more common and have been around a lot longer (since about 4K years ago) than nation-states. Howe's Very Short contribution is a good starting point, and provides a lot of food for thought for anyone interested in this topic.
Oh, one last thing -- the Further Reading list at the end of the book is excellent. |
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Review Summary: Timely and Vital |
Date: 2007-01-11 |
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Details: I have a number of these cute volumes from Oxford. They fill a useful niche in the academic literature on topics that are basic to understanding a wide variety of fields convering the humanities, history, and the social sciences. I found this particular volume on empire, however, a bit too broad and sweeping in historical scope; almost to the point where the concept of "empire" is rendered useless as an explanatory model. There should have been greater emphasis placed on "modern" empires that arose with the development of capitalism and its attendant imperial and colonial systems of maintanance. While the author's politics seem much more tepid in comparison to other contributors to this fine series, this particular volume is still worth reading. I request of Amazon that all these Oxford "Very Short Introduction" titles be stocked for purchase because they are ideal refresher courses that can be transported and read easily while waiting for the bus, sitting in a cafe, or occupying oneself until a beautiful woman who likes ideas wanders by. |
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Review Summary: From Sargon to Lord of the Rings...Still the same old story |
Date: 2003-12-26 |
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Details: Readers and especially students who want a quick overview of the meaning of "empire" (by no means self-evident) will find a bright diamond in Professor Howe's short text. Encompassed in this slender volume is an attempt to clarify what it means to have an empire, how that differs from colonialism, imperialism, globalization and other competing conceptual categories; a brief description of the leading empires -- Roman, Ottoman, Austria-Hungarian, British, Chinese; and an especially good discussion of relatively recent debates on the overall effects of Empire, with particular attention on the consequences of empire for the dispersion of democracy and the creation of global wealth in countries formerly within the shadow of an empire's reach. The issue of whether and to what extent the U.S. constitutes an empire is raised. This book is a great place to identify the many faceted debates associated with empire for more detailed, subsequent investigation. |
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