The Decline of the West (Oxford Paperbacks) by Spengler, Oswald (Paperback)

Description: About this productProduct InformationSince its first publication in two volumes between 1918-1923, The Decline of the West has ranked as one of the most widely read and most talked about books of our time. In all its various editions, it has sold nearly 100,000 copies. A twentieth-century Cassandra, Oswald Spengler thoroughly probed the origin and "fate" of our civilization, and the result can be (and has been) read as a prophesy of the Nazi regime. His challenging views have led to harsh criticism over the years, but the knowledge and eloquence that went into his sweeping study of Western culture have kept The Decline of the West alive. As the face of Germany and Europe as a whole continues to change each day, The Decline of the West cannot be ignored. The abridgment, prepared by the German scholar Helmut Werner, with the blessing of the Spengler estate, consists of selections from the original (translated into English by Charles Francis Atkinson) linked by explanatory passages which have been put into English by Arthur Helps. H. Stuart Hughes has written a new introduction for this edition. In this engrossing and highly controversial philosophy of history, Spengler describes how we have entered into a centuries-long "world-historical" phase comparable to late antiquity. Guided by the philosophies of Goethe and Nietzsche, he rejects linear progression, and instead presents a world view based on the cyclical rise and decline of civilizations. He argues that a culture blossoms from the soil of a definable landscape and dies when it has exhausted all of its possibilities. Despite Spengler's reputation today as an extreme pessimist, The Decline of the West remains essential reading for anyone interested in the history of civilization.Product IdentifiersPublisherOxford University Press, IncorporatedISBN-100195066340ISBN-139780195066340eBay Product ID (ePID)74866Product Key FeaturesBook TitleDecline of the WestAuthorOswald SpenglerFormatTrade PaperbackLanguageEnglishTopicCivilization, WORLDPublication Year1991GenreHistoryNumber of Pages492 PagesDimensionsItem Length5.3in.Item Height1.1in.Item Width8in.Item Weight16.6 OzAdditional Product FeaturesLc Classification NumberCb83.S63 1991Edition DescriptionAbridged EditionEdition Number2Reviews"This is a splendid edition. The introductory material is pointed and intriguing. The editing is superb. This volume is the best, and realistically, the only way to introduce Spengler to undergraduates."--Daniel P. Murphy, Hanover College, "Apocalyptic in tone, it is a massive, somber interpretation of the cyclical rise and fall of civilizations, much in the spirit and tradition of historical analysis displayed by another twentieth-century prophet, Arnold J. Toynbee....The contemporary reader will find much that is stimulatingin Spengler's criticism of our age."--San Francisco Chronicle, "An abridged edition of Spengler's classic is long overdue. it is one ofthe great masterpieces of German historical prose, and the translation conveysthe beauty and eloquence of the original language. its importance to today'sstudent should be immediately grasped by anyone who appreciates the problem ofdecline and its relevance for contemporary American (and Western)society."--William Falcetano, Merrimack College, "There is nothing in our contemporary literature quite like the xperience of reading Oswald Spengler's classic The Decline of the West....There is no matching his throwaway erudition, the sheer poetry of his symbols and images and the vaulting majesty of his thought....Especially welcome forthe brief but brilliantly incisive preface by America's best Spengler scholar, H. Stuart Hughes."--The Washington Times, "What [Spengler] wrote was an epic poem....The lesson to be learned from him is that writers too can be seismographs; the trembling of Spengler's themes signaled the coming of the Nazi earthquake."--New Statesman, "Often damned but still cited (the very title can turn a whole evening into a disputation), it is still a provocative and often dazzling book....An exciting excursion through history."--Time, "Apocalyptic in tone, it is a massive, somber interpretation of thecyclical rise and fall of civilizations, much in the spirit and tradition ofhistorical analysis displayed by another twentieth-century prophet, Arnold J.Toynbee....The contemporary reader will find much that is stimulating inSpengler's criticism of our age."--San Francisco Chronicle, "What [Spengler] wrote was an epic poem....The lesson to be learned fromhim is that writers too can be seismographs; the trembling of Spengler's themessignaled the coming of the Nazi earthquake."--New Statesman, "An abridged edition of Spengler's classic is long overdue. it is one of the great masterpieces of German historical prose, and the translation conveys the beauty and eloquence of the original language. its importance to today's student should be immediately grasped by anyone who appreciatesthe problem of decline and its relevance for contemporary American (and Western) society."--William Falcetano, Merrimack CollegeCopyright Date1991Target AudienceTradeLccn90-041662Dewey Decimal909Dewey Edition20

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