It was a huge undertaking by oswald spengler 18801936, formerly an unpublished historian and philosopher who set out to radically reconsider history the rise and fall of world civilisations and their cultures. One of the charms of this work is the wealth of detail viz. The decline of the west, which at first sight may appear, like the. Apr 28, 2016 the new modern man spengler s decline of the west series. Here we find, in one of the great figures of modem scholarship, exactly that large minded judgment that, while noting minor errors and visibly attaching little importance to them deals with the spengler thesis fairly and squarely. Quite contrary to most western political scientists and historians, who view the rise of modern democracy as the occidents most solid and admirable achievement and as a decidedly progressive force in world affairs, spengler is dubious on this score.
Spengler, epigenetics and the idea of race part 1 arktos. Complete summary of oswald spengler s the decline of the west. Except for his doctors thesis on heraclitus, he published nothing before the first volume of the decline of the west, which appeared when he was. The decline of the west by oswald spengler antilogicalism. Now, in the evening of the western culture, we can see that the world war is the great. The study presents the end of western civilization as an inevitable process of birth, maturity and death. It assessed the decline of european power and its crisis of culture and civilization, the placement of the thenrussia within the province of a global challenge to western civilization, and the roles of capitalism and marxism in the crisis. Like gibbon and michelet, he had no formal training, but he had passion, a gift for turning a phrase, and a modest income, which afforded him time for study and reflection.
Schroeters book which by the way is onethird as large as spenglers first. Spengler predicts the future of the 20th21st centuries. Oswald spengler, one of the most controversial historians of the twentieth century, was born in blankenburg, germany, in 1880. Everyone read spengler but nobody was able to do anything about it.
As previously pointed out in this article about oswald spengler s astonishingly accurate predictions for the western world made a century ago, we are currently in the winter of a declining western civilization. Form and actuality finally, dont buy the abridgment. The first significant representative of this winter civilization was napoleon the. I use that phrase because spengler then was nobody in particular, an oberlehrer or gymnasium teacher who had thrown up his job in 1910 in order to. The final stage of each culture is, in his word use, a civilization. The western culture has risen and is now in its stage of decline and civilization. A twentiethcentury cassandra, oswald spengler thoroughly probed the origin and fate of our civilization, and the result can be and has been read as a prophesy. Oswald spengler ian james kidd forthcoming in gregory claeys ed. In all its various editions, it has sold nearly 100,000 copies. Liberalism, enabled by economic interests that have corrupted the. English abridged edition prepared by arthur helps from the translation by. Oswald spengler 18801936 was one of the last great voices of literary history. Civilization, which, as used by him, connotes the death of a culture and a consequent. The time had passed when spiritual forces and values were determining the.
Ever since napoleon, hundreds of thousands, and latterly millions, of men have stood ready to march, and mighty fleets renewed every ten years have filled the harbours. Oswald spengler, technology, and human nature request pdf. Oswald spengler may 29, 1880 may 8, 1936 was a german philosopher and mathematician. Spengler predicted that about the year 2000, western civilization would enter the period of pre. Since its first publication in two volumes between 19181923, the decline of the west has ranked as one of the most widely read and most talked about books of our time. The decline of the west or more literally, the downfall of the occident, is a twovolume work by oswald spengler. Oswald spengler the decline of the west cultures as meaningful units for from huma at the hong kong university of science and technology. His work the decline of the west argues that the development of civilizations follows a recognizable series of repetitive rises and falls.
Optimism is cowardice and the gray dawn of civilization. A twentiethcentury 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. In 1918 oswald spengler published the first volume of the. In his book the decline of the west, spengler argued that all cultures pass through a life cycle, and that western civilization was already in unavoidable decline. Since its first publication more than eighty years ago, the decline of the west has ranked as one of the most widely read and talked about books of our time. Who was oswald spengler, and what are the essential. The decline of the west volume 1 published in 1917, volume 2 in 1922 has exercised and challenged opinion ever since. The decline of the west was a bestseller in the 1920s, and one of the most widely discussed intellectual works of the interwar era. Spengler s the decline of the west was a major publishing success in weimar germany. Download the decline of the west by oswald spengler pdf.
Furthermore, his prognosis for the west is a gloomy one of decline and dis integration. Yeats and oswald spengler s new historiography of civilization stephen m. Apr 11, 2006 oswald spengler, one of the most controversial historians of the twentieth century, was born in blankenburg, germany, in 1880. I in 1918, became an instant success in germany after its defeat in world war i. A twentiethcentury cassandra, oswald spengler thoroughly probed the origin and fate of our civilization, and the result can be and has bee. See oswald spengler, the decline of the west, trans. The decline of the west by spengler, oswald, 18801936. Jan 27, 2004 the german historian oswald spengler 18801936, whose membership in the academic fraternity of his discipline has often been questioned, was an exception. A similar judgement made in 1922 by german philosopher and historian oswald spengler had shocked readers. If you dont want to take the time to read the entire work, dont read it at all.
He believed it was the form of government of a civilization in decline, and interestingly the idea of mass democracy arrived in the winter of faustian western civilization. Apr 16, 2019 a uniquely pessimistic framework at that, one inspired by goethe and nietzsche, and one best remembered for spengler s view that grim determinism will bring an end to western civilisation. Introduction n historian, writing of one of the civilizations, chooses a way to unfold the narrative. The decline of the west by oswald spengler download pdf epub fb2. The decline of the west, by oswald spengler literature a.
Spengler was thirtyeight when the first volume of the decline of the west was. Oswald spengler and the crisis of western civilisation. The decline of the west, published in 1918 and 1922 english translation, 1928, in its time attracted much public and professional attention. The essence of culture and its development it has been nearly 100 years since the work of the german philosopher oswald spengler, the decline of the west, was published.
Oswald spengler s the decline of the west was a huge international bestseller after the first world war for reasons that will become obvious, and for reasons that may be just as much so, spengler considered his theories prophetic and completely justified given that he started this book in 1911 before the shit totally hit the fan. Feb, 2016 spengler believed democracy was the form of government of a civilization in decline, and interestingly the idea of mass democracy arrived in the winter of western civilization. Meyers article on spengler in the deutsche liter atur%eitung, no. A sweeping account of western culture by a historian of legendary intellect, it is an astonishingly informed, forcefully eloquent, thrillingly controversial work that advances a world view based on the cyclical rise and fall of civilisations. Merry says the great german pessimist oswald spengler, in his decline of the west, got a lot right about how western civilization would develop and that should make us think hard. The decline of the west is the magnum opus of oswald spengler 18801936, a german historian and philosopher. 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. Oswald spenglers the decline of the west was a huge international bestseller after the first world war for reasons that will become obvious, and for reasons that may be just as much so, spengler considered his theories prophetic and completely justified given that he started this book in before the shit totally hit the fan5. Spengler did not have a very high opinion of democracy. Spengler suggests that another high culture has started to manifest itself in russia 4. Instead, spengler suggests that germany assume the role of caesar, defeating the forces of english money, and preside over the decline of the west. Oswald spengler on cosmopolis and depopulation 2002. Peru might also qualify for inclusion in spengler s list.
English abridged edition prepared by arthur helps from the translation by charles francis atkinson. He studied mathematics, philosophy, and history in munich and berlin. Oswald spengler the decline of the west oswald spengler may 29, 1880 may 8, 1936 was a german philosopher and mathematician. Knopf, 1918 spengler s preface to the first edition the complete manuscript of this book the outcome of three years work was ready when the great war broke out. In 1918 oswald spengler published the first volume of the decline of the west from us history 0403 at whittier christian high school. The first volume, subtitled form and actuality, was published in the summer of 1918. Since his writings, the western civilization has declined. Spengler viewed democracy as a weapon of moneyed interests, who use the media to create the illusion that there is consent from the governed. The decline of the west is a philosophical book by german philosopher oswald spengler.
Although he never held an academic or political position, spengler became an immensely popular and influential writer and ideologue whose diagnoses of the decline of western culture were informed by an ambitious history of human civilization. This article is brought to you for free and open access by the all journals at byu scholarsarchive. Significant here is that roman civilization and greek civilization, like in spengler, are divorced from western civilization. While the title suggests being mainly about the fate of western civilization, it actually covers a lot of topics the history of the other great cultures chinese, indian, aztecs, classical, babylonian, middle eastern, egyptian, russian. Oswald spenglers monumental work, the decline of the. The book guardedly but prophetically placed deep reservations against the nazis to make appropriate. Stockton shortly before the end of the first world war, in the summer of 1918, a sizable volume appeared in bookstores throughout germany. In 1981, the lapd chief of police daryl gates wrote a letter demanding the film not be shown again in the city. Our western culture has not yet completed its lifecycle, although it has already reached late adulthood hence the title of the book the decline of the west. In it, spengler rejects the idea that the future of the west or indeed of any culture is an openended advance from the primitive past to an ever more glorious and expansive future. Spengler, a man of wide education with a phd in philosophy, conceived the idea for the decline of the west during the agadir crisis of 1911, when he formed the opinion that a general european war was inevitable.
The decline of the west by oswald spengler audiobook. How a german historian predicted the decline of western. Dec 12, 2003 spengler tells us that government in 19th and 20thcentury europe reflects the cultures general decline into civilization. Except for his doctors thesis on heraclitus, he published nothing before the first volume of the decline of the west, which appeared when he was thirtyeight. Oswald spengler affronts both the positivism of liberalism and marxism on the one hand which are based on a lineal march of history from primitive to modern, ending in a utopian end of history, at which humanity has reached its apex of striving, and the right on the other, from which spengler himself emerged, but which has nevertheless often rejected. Please like, comment, and subscribe to make sure you find out when i upload the rest of this audiobook. The decline of the west, by oswald spengler literature. The decline of the west by oswald spengler, paperback. Cq press, 20 oswald spengler 18801936 was a reactionary modernist. The decline of western civilization is a 1981 american documentary filmed through 1979 and 1980. Oswald spengler the decline of the west, volume one.
277 1059 1431 259 1299 639 1300 101 1533 1421 206 1528 1415 416 1268 1115 867 168 697 477 270 977 413 94 67 332 708 320