A Farewell to Alms

A Brief Economic History of the World

Business & Finance, Economics, Economic History
Cover of the book A Farewell to Alms by Gregory Clark, Princeton University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Gregory Clark ISBN: 9781400827817
Publisher: Princeton University Press Publication: December 29, 2008
Imprint: Princeton University Press Language: English
Author: Gregory Clark
ISBN: 9781400827817
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Publication: December 29, 2008
Imprint: Princeton University Press
Language: English

Why are some parts of the world so rich and others so poor? Why did the Industrial Revolution--and the unprecedented economic growth that came with it--occur in eighteenth-century England, and not at some other time, or in some other place? Why didn't industrialization make the whole world rich--and why did it make large parts of the world even poorer? In A Farewell to Alms, Gregory Clark tackles these profound questions and suggests a new and provocative way in which culture--not exploitation, geography, or resources--explains the wealth, and the poverty, of nations.

Countering the prevailing theory that the Industrial Revolution was sparked by the sudden development of stable political, legal, and economic institutions in seventeenth-century Europe, Clark shows that such institutions existed long before industrialization. He argues instead that these institutions gradually led to deep cultural changes by encouraging people to abandon hunter-gatherer instincts-violence, impatience, and economy of effort-and adopt economic habits-hard work, rationality, and education.

The problem, Clark says, is that only societies that have long histories of settlement and security seem to develop the cultural characteristics and effective workforces that enable economic growth. For the many societies that have not enjoyed long periods of stability, industrialization has not been a blessing. Clark also dissects the notion, championed by Jared Diamond in Guns, Germs, and Steel, that natural endowments such as geography account for differences in the wealth of nations.

A brilliant and sobering challenge to the idea that poor societies can be economically developed through outside intervention, A Farewell to Alms may change the way global economic history is understood.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Why are some parts of the world so rich and others so poor? Why did the Industrial Revolution--and the unprecedented economic growth that came with it--occur in eighteenth-century England, and not at some other time, or in some other place? Why didn't industrialization make the whole world rich--and why did it make large parts of the world even poorer? In A Farewell to Alms, Gregory Clark tackles these profound questions and suggests a new and provocative way in which culture--not exploitation, geography, or resources--explains the wealth, and the poverty, of nations.

Countering the prevailing theory that the Industrial Revolution was sparked by the sudden development of stable political, legal, and economic institutions in seventeenth-century Europe, Clark shows that such institutions existed long before industrialization. He argues instead that these institutions gradually led to deep cultural changes by encouraging people to abandon hunter-gatherer instincts-violence, impatience, and economy of effort-and adopt economic habits-hard work, rationality, and education.

The problem, Clark says, is that only societies that have long histories of settlement and security seem to develop the cultural characteristics and effective workforces that enable economic growth. For the many societies that have not enjoyed long periods of stability, industrialization has not been a blessing. Clark also dissects the notion, championed by Jared Diamond in Guns, Germs, and Steel, that natural endowments such as geography account for differences in the wealth of nations.

A brilliant and sobering challenge to the idea that poor societies can be economically developed through outside intervention, A Farewell to Alms may change the way global economic history is understood.

More books from Princeton University Press

Cover of the book Revolutionary Ideas by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Single Digits by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 9 (Part 2) by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Philip Roth's Rude Truth by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book The Reemergence of Self-Employment by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book The Presidency of George W. Bush by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Birds of Venezuela by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Arendt and Heidegger by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Hume's Politics by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Watch Me Play by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Degenerate Diffusion Operators Arising in Population Biology (AM-185) by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Leisurely Islam by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book The Quotable Jung by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 5 by Gregory Clark
Cover of the book Irrational Exuberance by Gregory Clark
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy