Dec 24, 2009
Not every work that is monumental because of its size is monumental in character. Arnold J. Toynbee’s A Study of History, a twelve-volume work, compels the continuing critical attention of historians, philosophers, and other students of civilizations rising and falling over time. Despite its scope, this book is not superficial; despite its author’s ambition—to account for the death of civilizations—it shows no sign of a confusion between modesty and unoriginality: considered as a theory, it is daring and illuminating.
Is it, however,...
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