Introduction: Beyond the ‘End of History’

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Hobson
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
International Society ◽  
Liberal Democracy ◽  
Historical Approach ◽  
End Of History ◽  
History Of ◽  
The End Of History ◽  
The Cold War

This chapter provides an introduction to the central arguments and themes of the book. It considers the standing of democracy following the end of the Cold War, noting that liberal democracy still remains ideationally in the ascent a quarter of a century later. It is suggested that there is a strong need to understand the history of democracy in order to comprehend the challenges and problems it currently faces. The historical approach the book takes is outlined, proposing that there is a need to explore democracy’s development in relation to the emergence of modern international society.

scholarly journals The East Lost the Cold war, but did the West Win?

2008 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Curtis Bauer
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Economic System ◽  
Liberal Democracy ◽  
The West ◽  
End Of History ◽  
The Future ◽  
Fragile Environment ◽  
The End Of History ◽  
The Cold War

Clearly the East lost the Cold War to the West, suffering total economic and political collapse by the late 1980s. Yet it is not entirely clear if or what the West won. Western economies continue to labor under the extensive military commitments. The ideology of liberal democracy, although laudable, is difficult to implement. Capitalism, as an economic system, is torn between the need for perpetual growth and the protection of a fragile environment. Was the end of the Cold War truly "the end of history" as some suggest, or do the lessons of the period stand instead as a cautionary for the future?

scholarly journals Contemplating Cosmopolitan Global Governance in Postcolonial Discourse Analysis

Federalism-E ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-76
Author(s):  
Ajnesh Prasad
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Cold War ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
World Politics ◽  
International Affairs ◽  
Clash Of Civilizations ◽  
End Of History ◽  
The End Of History ◽  
Postcolonial Discourse ◽  
The Cold War

“The international community is at a crossroads” (Held, 1995a: 96). Since the conclusion of the Cold War and with the elimination of the bipolar world thereafter, many scholars have attempted to theorize, if only to evaluate, the transformations that have taken place within the realm of world politics in the last decade and a half. From Francis Fukuyama’s argument, the “End of History” (1992), to Samuel Huntington’s thesisclaim, the “Clash of Civilizations” (1993), there have been categorizing, and ultimately limiting, understandings of international affairs in the postcommunist period. Consequently, discursive and explicit interstices of antagonistic tension continue to prevail and manifest into graphic demonstrations of hegemonic aggression and parochial actions of daily resistance. The international interstices of antagonistic tension continue to threaten immeasurable tragedy at the most globalized landscape. Remnants of these present tensions go so far as to predicate the aggressive and resistant temperament of events like the aircraft attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. [...]

Self-determination as a Challenge to the Legitimacy of Humanitarian Interventions: The Case of Kosovo

2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Srdjan Cvijic
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Self Determination ◽  
Berlin Wall ◽  
End Of History ◽  
Human Community ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Francis Fukuyama ◽  
Humanitarian Interventions ◽  
The End Of History ◽  
The Cold War

The fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Cold War were greeted by many as an important step in the unstoppable development of human civilization. Francis Fukuyama even announced, in his celebrated essay of the same name, the “end of history” and the triumph of the liberal democratic model, which, according to him, was soon to become the most dominant, if not the only, form of organized human community.

scholarly journals On Recent Developments in the New Historiography of (Neo)Liberalism

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 116-124
Author(s):  
Iain Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Cold War ◽  
War On Terror ◽  
Turn Of The Century ◽  
Post Cold War ◽  
Post Colonial ◽  
End Of History ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
History Of ◽  
The End Of History

Over the last twenty years or so several new waves of research on the history of liberalism have emerged. The novelty of this should not be exaggerated as broad scholarly interest in liberalism has in fact been increasing at a remarkable rate since the 1980s. Nevertheless, it is clear that the historiography of liberalism has broken much new ground since around the turn of the century. This has been driven partly by the influence of larger developments in the humanities and social sciences. The global and post-colonial turns, for instance, have helped to reshape the historiography of liberalism by provoking debates over the extent of its complicity in slavery and colonialism, while also drawing attention to the contribution of theorists from the global south. But even much of this ‘normal’ innovation has been driven at least indirectly by a growing sense that liberalism is in crisis. The War on Terror, the financial meltdown of 2008 and the global rise of populist authoritarianism are the obvious staging posts in liberalism's journey from post-Cold War triumphalism to contemporary fears for its imminent demise. And it is not a coincidence that the end of the end of history has seen the beginning of a new historiography of liberalism. Since the early 2000s the emergence of new sub-fields like the histories of ‘Cold War liberalism’, human rights and neoliberalism can all be seen in different ways as responding to liberalism's unfolding crisis.

Concept of “End of History”: F. Fukuyama Views’ Evolution

2019 ◽  
pp. 186-195
Author(s):  
Dmitrii Khristenko
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Liberal Democracy ◽  
Human Society ◽  
September 11Th ◽  
End Of History ◽  
Russian Scientific ◽  
History Of ◽  
The End Of History ◽  
Key Events ◽  
Globalized World

We analyze the evolution of the Fukuyama’s views on the development of modern globalized world. The relevance of the topic is due to the fact that this issue is not fully covered in the Russian scientific literature. In particular, little attention is paid to the Western critics of F. Fu-kuyama, who from the very beginning put forward serious remarks against his concept. We rely on a chronological method, in which the ideological evolution of F. Fukuyama correlates with key events in the history of international relations, for example, September 11th, 2001. It is proved, that as a result the American thinker seriously revised his famous concept of “the end of history”. Although Fukuyama still does not see any serious competition between liberal democracy and ri-val ideologies, he admits that there are fundamental problems in the system he proposed earlier. F. Fukuyama notes that the main peril for liberal democracy comes from its internal weaknesses, which are related to the biosocial nature of human and the structure of his inner personality. At the same time, F. Fukuyama acknowledges, it is impossible to suspend the development of technologies, specifically biotechnologies, and to predict the results that it can bring to the whole mankind. Because of that, we conclude that the “end of history” is postponed, and liberal democracy is only a short step in the endless spiral of the existence of human society.

Global Development

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara Lorenzini
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
International Organizations ◽  
Development Aid ◽  
Global Perspective ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Development Projects ◽  
Berlin Wall ◽  
History Of Development ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Cold War

In the Cold War, “development” was a catchphrase that came to signify progress, modernity, and economic growth. Development aid was closely aligned with the security concerns of the great powers, for whom infrastructure and development projects were ideological tools for conquering hearts and minds around the globe, from Europe and Africa to Asia and Latin America. This book provides a global history of development, drawing on a wealth of archival evidence to offer a panoramic and multifaceted portrait of a Cold War phenomenon that transformed the modern world. Taking readers from the aftermath of the Second World War to the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, the book shows how development projects altered local realities, transnational interactions, and even ideas about development itself. The book shines new light on the international organizations behind these projects—examining their strategies and priorities and assessing the actual results on the ground—and it also gives voice to the recipients of development aid. It shows how the Cold War shaped the global ambitions of development on both sides of the Iron Curtain, and how international organizations promoted an unrealistically harmonious vision of development that did not reflect local and international differences. The book presents a global perspective on Cold War development, demonstrating how its impacts are still being felt today.

Louis Menand: The Metaphysical Club: A Story of Ideas in America. 2001. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 546 pp.

2003 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 201-204
Author(s):  
Lance Kenney
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Cold War ◽  
William James ◽  
The United States ◽  
History Of Ideas ◽  
Cultural Impact ◽  
Oliver Wendell Holmes ◽  
History Of ◽  
Charles Peirce ◽  
The Cold War

Louis Menand’s The Metaphysical Club, daunting in its choice of subject matter, closely aligns itself with the ancient sense of the word ‘history’ as a fluid, almost epic narrative. The Metaphysical Club of the title was a conversation group that met in Cambridge for a few months in 1872. Its membership roster listed some of the greatest intellectuals of the day: Charles Peirce, William James, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Chauncey Wright, amongst others. There is no record of the Club’s discussions or debates—in fact, the only direct reference to the Club is made by Peirce in a letter written thirty-five years later. Menand utilizes the Club as a jumping-off point for a sweeping analysis of the beliefs of the day. The subtitle of the book belies its true mission: ‘a story of ideas in America.’ Menand discusses the intellectual and social conditions that helped shape these men by the time they were members of the Club. He then shows the philosophical, political, and cultural impact that these men went on to have. In doing so, Menand traces a history of ideas in the United States from immediately prior to the Civil War to the beginning of the Cold War.

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