PERIODIZATION:1914 - PRESENT
CONTINUITIES AND CHANGES IN THE PERIOD
CONTINUITIES, BREAKS1914 – 1939 and 1939 - 1945
30 Year World WarNationalism triumphantWestern Europe at peak, beginning of challenge
1945 – 1989Bipolar World of US, USSRDecolonization, Internationalism Globalization, Consumerism
1989 – PresentMulti-polar worldDecreased emphasis on ideologiesThe universal or global village?Rise of fundamentalism (reaction)
GREAT TRANSFORMATIONPrior to the 20th Century
Completed • In Western Europe• In the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand• In Japan
Beginning but not completed• In Russia• In Eastern and Southern Europe
In the 20th CenturyCompleted
• In Eastern Europe, Latin America• In East Asia (China, Korea, Vietnam)• In Parts of Southeast Asia• In India, Central Asia including Mongolia• In Turkey, Israel and a few SW Asian, North African nations• In a few African nations such as South Africa
Beginning but not completed• In Most of Africa• In Most of the Muslim world
TRADITIONChallenged by
ModernismIndustrializationConsumerismSecularizationWesternization
Often unable to compete, survive
TRADITIONAL ECONOMIESProduce within a small communityGeneral uniformity of tasks, opportunitiesChange is slow and distrustedGenerally autarkicDecisions based on tradition, elders, pastLow, few or little
SurplusTechnologyCapital
Labor intensiveMuch land, resources held in commonProduction = consumptionMinimal trade
MARKET ECONOMYSpecializationTechnology intensiveUse artificial powerProduce surplusesProfits are strongest motivationDominated by credit, monetary institutionsTrade criticalSupply and demand determine price, availabilityLabor bought and sold as a factorProducts bought not produced by individual laborHighly mechanized, technologized
CONSUMERISMWorkers
Paid in wages, creating demandWorkers need, creating supply•Clothing, Housing, Food, Medicine•Luxuries, Entertainment, Transportation
Workers acquired free time
Mass manufacture of consumer goodsMass marketing of elite culture
URBANIZATIONFocus of transformation is the cityMost industries, opportunities located in citiesTo grow large, cities need
Steel to build upRail to transport around, bring in foodMass power to support life
Cities growUrban areasMetropolitan areasSuburbsMegapolisConurbations
SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPSCommunity or Society
Community is small and personal; villages and traditionsSociety is large and held together by permanent large institutions
Lifestyle changesExtended families tended to be norm at startFamilies tend to become nuclearFamilies tend to be fragmented, not contiguousWomen tend to become workersWomen often acquire rights, powers in societyWorkers tend to become more educatedChildhood lengthened, adulthood delayedUniversal education is expanded
Pace of life much acceleratedTemporary relationships become commonChange becomes frequent
MASS POLITICSExpansion of electorate
Universal male suffrageUniversal female suffrageEnfranchisement of minorities
Politics Is seen as marketplace of ideasCompetition and compromise to obtain change
Rise of political partiesParties become common, open to allParties represent diverse factionsPeople vote their interests
Modern technology creates mass politicsAge of Information leads to competition of ideasRise of ideologiesParties compete for voters
Modern technology allows for mass controlRise of totalitarian ideologiesRise of single party dictatorships
BUREAUCRATIZATIONPower of the state
State minimally intrusive prior to 19th centuryGenerally confined to politics, military, lawExpands massively into
• Social areas and concerns• Economics, Industry, Commerce
Rolls created by war, increased technology
BureaucratsBecome new social elitesRegulate all aspects of public lifeOversees expanding roll of government
SECULARIZATIONProcess begun by Enlightenment
Idea of progress, reform, perfectibilityNotion of natural law, scienceReligion is a personal matter not public concern
Science Knowledge appliedTechnology accelerates, achieves almost utopian world
Scientist replaces clergymanClergy explains by faithScientist explains by experimentation, proofGod diminished as irrational, unprovable
Separation of church and stateHumanism
Human (civil) law replaces God’s lawHuman concerns, understandings dominate society
Rise of ideology to replace theologyConflict between fundamentalism and humanism
DECOLONIZATIONDEMOCRATIZATION
Breakup of Western EmpiresWorld War I challenged western controlDepression loosened links to mother countriesWorld War II destroyed Western invincibilityDemocracy, US begin to insist up independencePolitical vs. Social, Economics Decolonization
Self-Determination and Democratization Wilson’s 14 Points, FDR and US modelUN Declaration of Human Rights
GLOBALIZATIONBegan with imperialism, coloniesExpanded due to industrialization, tradeNecessary for market economy, free tradeMade possible by mass communication
Telephone, telegraph, televisionAirplane, steam vesselComputer, Internet, instant communication
Made unavoidable by economic specializationFostered by “universalizing agents”
Mass entertainment and cultureImmigration and migration for workMass religion
DEMOGRAPHICSHow much population is too much?Control factors
Birth rateDeath rateLife span
Phases I: Prior to 1450 (World)
• High Birth, High Death• Slow population growth
II: Europe 16-18th Centuries• High Birth rate, declining death rate• Population increase
III: Europe, US, Canada: 19th century; world 20th century• High Birth rate, low death rate, longer life span• Population explosion
IV: Europe, US, Japan late 20th century• Low Birth Rate, Low Death Rate• Declining Population
ENVIRONMENT1750 – 1914 Saw European, parts of American areas effected20th Century has seen effects spread throughout the world 20th Century has been an environmental disasterExamples
Overpopulation and massive megapolis Deforestation especially of tropical zonesDesertification has increased due to overgrazing, overfarmingOverfishing of rich areas had reduced catches to extremely low areasHunting of whales and sharks to near extinctionOvergrazing of fragile zonesMass extinctions of animalsSettlement of fragile zones (tide waters, coastal zones)Overuse of aquifersPollution of the Arctic, AntarcticEnvironmental pollutants (fertilizers, radioactive ores) have made areas unlivableReduction of habitats and zones in transition to farming, loggingPollution
• Water• Air• Land