Despotism article about despotism by the free dictionary. Chine, despotisme oriental, etat stationnaire, croissance economique. A comparative study of total power, first published in 1957. In his seminal book oriental despotism 1957, historian and political scientist karl wittfogel presented a general theory of the development of ancient civilizations.
Almost as soon as a reader opened it, he was likely to be struck by a singular typology of governments. Toward an understanding of the life and work of karl august wittfogel, mouton publishers, the hagueparisnew york, 1978. From the fiscal, le gal, and political points of view private landownership was as weak at the. Oriental despotism is a term used to describe a despotic form of government that opposes the western tradition. Ours is an age of second thoughts, and of going back to earlier writers for inspiration and new insights. Il est lauteur du despotisme oriental, ouvrage qui a suscite des debats. Full text of karl august wittfogel oriental despotism. Oriental despotism article about oriental despotism by. A comparative study of total power, first published in starting from. Stellingmichaud, le mythe du despotisme oriental, schweizer beitrdge zur allgemeinen geschichte 1960, pp. Wittfogels theory of oriental society or hydraulic society and the. He found examples of largescale systematic organization of work, the emergence of social classes, and widespread specialization. Full text of karl august wittfogel oriental despotism see other formats. In 1957 karl augustin wittfogel published his work on oriental despotism, in which he assumes that since prehistoric times in many places of the world the necessity for large.
Asiatic society was a form of society which, following adam smith, marx and j. The concept of oriental despotism from aristotle to marx. Nicolasgabriel le clerc offered it as an example to russia, specifically to the. Wittfogel, oriental despotism, new haven et londres, p. He developed the idea of the economic necessity of supporting irrigation systems as the foundation of a. Thus, the more a despot would be concerned with oppression, the more he would need to increase his army of men hired to praise and protect him, and the more he would need to carefully choose them from among the lowliest of criminals, men devoid. Wittfogel le despotisme oriental communisme vladimir lenine. Pdf hydraulic bureaucracy in a modern hydraulic society. Montesquieus l esprit des lois, first published in 1748, was an innovative and often paradoxical work.
Nov 12, 2014 marx never elaborated on his theory, and so it remained an alluring phrase until karl wittfogel, a former german communist who immigrated to the united states to escape the nazis, took marxs concept and shaped it into a book he published in 1957, oriental despotism. A comparative study of total power by wittfogel, karl a. The book offers an explanation for the despotic governments in oriental societies, where control of water was necessary for irrigation and floodcontrol. Il sera suivi en cela tres rapidement par karl wittfogel. Karl august wittfogel was a germanamerican playwright, historian, and sinologist. Karl wittfogel and the nomothetic revival in anthropology by rene michel descartes karl august wittfogel. Sorry, we are unable to provide the full text but you may find it at the following locations. Normally, that entity is an individual, the despot, as in an autocracy, but societies which limit respect and power to specific groups have also been called despotic.
In the 20th century, karl august wittfogel 18961988 recovered the term oriental despotism in his provocative work oriental despotism in 1957. Le despotisme oriental wittfogel pdf search for happiness. Among the factors that created this void, one should not underrate the lure of karl august wittfogel s concept of oriental despotism. Originally a marxist and an active member of the communist party of germany, after the second world war wittfogel was an equally fierce anticommunist. Oriental despotism, the asiatic mode of production and oriental society will. It was a conceptual model in different interacting cultural contexts, it assumed various functions and meanings, and it waned with the decline of the eurocentric preconception on which it was deeply grounded ever since its origins in greek thought. A comparative study of total power by wittfogel, karl august isbn.
Anthrose humanities and social sciencessocial anthropology and ethnology. In the 20th century, karl august wittfogel 18961988. Starting from a marxist analysis of the ideas of max weber on china and indias hydraulicbureaucratic officialstate and building on marxs sceptical view of the asiatic mode of production, wittfogel came up with an analysis of oriental despotism which emphasized the role of irrigation works, the bureaucratic structures needed to maintain them and the impact that these. Karl august wittfogel 6 september 1896, in woltersdorf, germany 25 may 1988, in new york, usa was a german. Mill and much 19thcentury european thought, wittfogel saw as characterized by despotic. Oriental despotism, by karl wittfogel commentary magazine. The idea of oriental despotism has an old and diversified history in european culture. Historically, the terms meaning has varied and today it is hardly ever used at all, largely because of all the issues surrounding the concept of orientalism. Karl wittfogel in the american communist newspaper. Wittfogel and the asiatic mode of production sage journals. Originally a marxist and oriiental active member of the communist party of germanyafter the second world war wittfogel was an equally fierce anticommunist. Wittfogel advanced the term in his book oriental despotism 1957. Etude comparative du pouvoir total karl a wittfogel on free shipping on qualifying offers.
Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. He adds that this sort of hired men known today as the shabbiha increase and decrease in number according to the harshness or lightness of despotism. Marx never elaborated on his theory, and so it remained an alluring phrase until karl wittfogel, a former german communist who immigrated to the united states to escape the nazis, took marxs concept and shaped it into a book he published in 1957, oriental despotism. Results and problems of the study of oriental despotism the. Il est lauteur du despotisme oriental, ouvrage qui a suscite des debats importants. Wittfogel is best known for his monumental work oriental despotism. Preface two aspects of this study of oriental despotism quickly aroused interest.
Tocqueville nest pas le premier intellectuel francais a faire le voyage americain, quelquesuns avant lui avaient d. Oriental despotism article about oriental despotism by the. Civilizations whose agriculture was dependent upon largescale waterworks for irrigation and flood control were called hydraulic civilizations by the germanamerican historian karl a. Starting from a marxist analysis of the ideas of max weber on china and indias hydraulicbureaucratic officialstate and building on marxs sceptical view of the asiatic mode of production, wittfogel came up with an analysis of oriental despotism which. Karl wittfogel, lui, passa quelques annees en chine, puis il devint foncierement anticommuniste et il ecrivit le despotisme oriental, son grand ouvrage theorique. Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read. D d kosambi the contents of this impressive, beautifully printed and well got up publication with its. Wittfogel le despotisme oriental communisme vladimir. Wittfogel s anticommunism led in oriental despotism to extend the hydraulic hypothesis to russia, where it hardly is applicable. Wittfogel was born in woltersdorf, province of hanover. The concept of oriental despotism has shaped the european interpretation and. The morphogenesis of socalled oriental despotism, pace wittfogel, does not move in a single direction through water control protevi, 2007. Orientalism and islam european thinkers on oriental despotism in the middle east and india. Starting from a marxist analysis of the ideas of max weber on china and indias hydraulicbureaucratic officialstate and building on marxs sceptical view of the asiatic mode of production, wittfogel came up with an analysis of oriental despotism which emphasized.
Montesquieus view of despotism and his use of travel. Karl august wittfogel 6 september 1896, in woltersdorf, germany 25 may 1988, in new york, usa was a germanamerican playwright, historian, and sinologist. Wittfogel in his book oriental despotism 1957 wittfogel believed that such hydraulic civilizations although neither all in the orient nor characteristic of all oriental societies were quite. Bertrand binoche, despotism a montesquieu dictionary. Orientalism and islam by michael curtis cambridge core.
Wittfogel, any culture having an agricultural system that is dependent upon largescale governmentmanaged waterworksproductive for irrigation and protective for flood control. Arguments by joseph needham and others against karl a. Wittfogel, karl august 18961988 worldcat identities. Telechargez comme pdf, txt ou lisez en ligne sur scribd. Whether youve loved the book or not, if you give your honest and detailed thoughts then people will find new books that are right for them. The first general theory advanced to explain the development of ancient civilizations with systematic organization of work on a large scale, the emergence of social classes, and widespread specialization was elaborated in the united states by the historian and political scientist karl wittfogel in his seminal book oriental despotism 1957. Karl wittfogel is best known for his hydraulic hypothesis.
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