Title The Roman predicament : how the rules of international order create the politics of empire / Harold James

Published Princeton, N.J. ; Oxford : Princeton University Press, 2008

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Description 1 online resource (vii, 166 pages) : illustrations Contents The model of decline and fall -- Mercury and Mars -- The questioning of rules in an obscure and irregular system -- Can it last? -- The victory of Mars -- Terminus : beyond the fringe -- The Holy Roman Empire and the Roman Empire Summary Modern America owes the Roman Empire for more than gladiator movies and the architecture of the nation's Capitol. It can also thank the ancient republic for some helpful lessons in globalization. So argues economic historian Harold James in this masterful work of intellectual history. The book addresses what James terms "the Roman dilemma"--The paradoxical notion that while global society depends on a system of rules for building peace and prosperity, this system inevitably leads to domestic clashes, international rivalry, and even wars. As it did in ancient Rome, James argues, a rule-based world order eventually subverts and destroys itself, creating the need for imperial action. The result is a continuous fluctuation between pacification and the breakdown of domestic order. James summons this argument, first put forth more than two centuries ago in Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations and Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, to put current events into perspective. The world now finds itself staggering between a set of internationally negotiated trading rules and exchange--rate regimes, and the enforcement practiced by a sometimes-imperial America. These two forces--liberal international order and empire--will one day feed on each other to create a shakeup in global relations, James predicts. To reinforce his point, he invokes the familiar bon mot once applied to the British Empire: "When Britain could not rule the waves, it waived the rules." Despite the pessimistic prognostications of Smith and Gibbon, who saw no way out of this dilemma, James ends his book on a less depressing note. He includes a chapter on one possible way in which the world could resolve the Roman Predicament--by opting for a global system based on values as opposed to rules Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 151-161) and index Notes Print version record Subject Smith, Adam, 1723-1790. Inquiry into the nature and causes of the wealth of nations. Gibbon, Edward, 1737-1794. History of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. SUBJECT History of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire (Gibbon, Edward) fast Inquiry into the nature and causes of the wealth of nations (Smith, Adam) fast Subject Imperialism. Power (Social sciences) International economic relations. International organization. Social values. POLITICAL SCIENCE -- Colonialism & Post-Colonialism. POLITICAL SCIENCE -- Globalization. Imperialism International economic relations International organization Power (Social sciences) Social values SUBJECT Rome -- History -- Empire, 30 B.C.-476 A.D. http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85115128 Subject Rome (Empire) Genre/Form History Form Electronic book ISBN 9781400837632 1400837634 0691136351 9780691136356

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