A Study of History: Abridgement of Volumes I–VI

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION

i. THE UNIT OF HISTORICAL STUDY

ii. THE COMPARATIVE STUDY OF CIVILIZATIONS

iii. THE COMPARABILITY OF SOCIETIES

(1) Civilizations and Primitive Societies

(2) The Misconception of ‘The Unity of Civilization*

(3) The Case for the Comparability of Civilizations

(4) History, Science and Fiction

II. THE GENESES OF CIVILIZATIONS

iv. THE PROBLEM AND HOW NOT TO SOLVE IT

(1) The Problem stated

(3) Environment

v. CHALLENGE AND RESPONSE

(1) The Mythological Clue

(2) The Myth applied to the Problem

vi. THE VIRTUES OF ADVERSITY

vii. THE CHALLENGE OF THE ENVIRONMENT

(1) The Stimulus of Hard Countries

(2) The Stimulus of New Ground

(3) The Stimulus of Blows

(4) The Stimulus of Pressures

(5) The Stimulus of Penalizations

viii. THE GOLDEN MEAN

(1) Enough and Too Much

(2) Comparisons in Three Terms

(3) Two Abortive Civilizations

(4) The Impact of Islam on the Christendoms

III. THE GROWTHS OF CIVILIZATIONS

ix. THE ARRESTED CIVILIZATIONS

(1) Polynesians, Eskimos and Nomads

(2) The ‘Osmanlis

(3) The Spartans

(4) General Characteristics

NOTE. Sea and Steppe as Language-conductors

x. THE NATURE OF THE GROWTHS OF CIVILIZATIONS

(1) Two False Trails

(2) Progress towards Self-determination

xi. AN ANALYSIS OF GROWTH

(1) Society and the Individual

(2) Withdrawal and Return: Individuals

(3) Withdrawal and Return: Creative Minorities

xii. DIFFERENTIATION THROUGH GROWTH

IV. THE BREAKDOWNS OF CIVILIZATIONS

xiii. THE NATURE OF THE PROBLEM

xiv. DETERMINISTIC SOLUTIONS

xv. Loss OF COMMAND OVER THE ENVIRONMENT

(1) The Physical Environment

(2) The Human Environment

(3) A Negative Verdict

xvi. FAILURE OF SELF-DETERMINATION

(1) The Mechanicalness of Mimesis

(2) New Wine in Old Bottles

(3) The Nemesis of Creativity: Idolization of an Ephemeral Self

(4) The Nemesis of Creativity: Idolization of an Ephemeral Institution

(5) The Nemesis of Creativity: Idolization of an Ephemeral Technique

(6) The Suicidalness of Militarism

(7) The Intoxication of Victory

V. THE DISINTEGRATIONS OF CIVILIZATIONS

xvii. THE NATURE OF DISINTEGRATION

(1) A General Survey

(2) Schism and Palingenesia

xviii. SCHISM IN THE BODY SOCIAL

(1) Dominant Minorities

(2) Internal Proletariats

(3) The Internal Proletariat of the Western World

(4) External Proletariats

(5) External Proletariats of the Western World

(6) Alien and Indigenous Inspirations

xix. SCHISM IN THE SOUL

(1) Alternative Ways of Behaviour, Feeling and Life

(2) ‘Abandon’ and Self-Control

(3) Truancy and Martyrdom

(4) The Sense of Drift and the Sense of Sin

(5) The Sense of Promiscuity

(a) Vulgarity and Barbarism in Manners

(b) Vulgarity and Barbarism in Art

(c) Lingue Franche

(d) Syncretism in Religion

(e) Cuius Regio eius Religion

(6) The Sense of Unity

(9) The Self-transcendence of Futurism

(10) Detachment and Transfiguration

(11) Palingenesia

xx. THE RELATION BETWEEN DISINTEGRATING SOCIETIES AND INDIVIDUALS

(1) The Creative Genius as a Saviour

(2) The Saviour with the Sword

(3) The Saviour with the Time Machine

(4) The Philosopher masked by a King

(5) The God incarnate in a Man.

xxi. THE RHYTHM OF DISINTEGRATION

xxii. STANDARDIZATION THROUGH DISINTEGRATION

EDITOR’S NOTE AND TABLESI-V