Rating: 
Summary: Historical Origins of the Contemporary World
Review: Let me begin by quoting from Jacques Barzun. He sees the book as " . . . a chance to describe . . . some aspects of present decadence that may have escaped notice and and show how they relate to others generally acknowledged." The forms of decadence that he identifies in comtemporary society include excess use of television, public images of a sexual and immoral nature, a decline in traditional religion and an upsurge in various sects, a decline in the nation state, a decline in support for the nation state, the rise of professional sports operated in an undistinguished way morally, and a general withdrawal from traditional forms of education and high culture. I mention this upfront because you may feel differently about the meaning of these same trends.At the end of the book, he writes from the perspective of the year 2300 about what happens in the next 300 years. This is one of the most interesting aspects of the book. He predicts that boredom will eventually drive people back into being interested in the traditional intellectual, social, and artistic paths of western civilization. At one level, he may well be right because the current technological revolution will rapidly reduce the amount of employment required for every day goods and services. Until more interesting ones are developed, a surfeit of cheap goods, services and entertainment may quickly become boring -- particularly if they are primarily consumed in a passive way. Barzun also tell us who his audience is: ". . . this book is for people who like to read about art and thought, manners, morals, and religion, and the social setting in which these activities have been and are taking place." He also has assumed tht readers " . . . prefer discourse to be selective and critical . . . ." His hypothesis is a defense of western civilization. "I hope to show . . . that the peoples of the West offered the world a set of ideas and institutions not found earlier or elsewhere." This is an unusually long book, but the nature of the subject requires it. Certainly, I saw no place where the book provided too much or extraneous detail. To help the reader, the book is delightfully broken down into smaller units. The first is from 1500 to 1660 (the key issue was what to believe in religion), the second from 1661-1789 (the status of the individual and the mode of government predominate as topics), the third from 1790-1920 (government as a means to provide social and economic equality as the central issues), and the fourth from 1921 to the present (a mixture of all these past issues). Then, within each section, there are a series of essays that look at the primary religious, artistic, scientific, social, governmental, and thought developments. To tie all of these essays together, he uses concepts that he feels are continuing themes over the 500 years. To help these stand out, he CAPITALIZES them. Some of the major themes include PRIMITIVISM, EMANCIPATION, INDIVIDUALISM, SELF-CONSCIOUSNESS, ANALYSIS, REDUCTIVISM, SECULARISM and ABSTRACTION. To give the reader a firm place to stand, he includes several essays that are centered on a place and time to give a better sense of what it was like to live then. These are usually chosen to be near where the dominant themes were playing most strongly (Madrid in 1540, Venice in 1650, London in 1715, Weimar in 1790, Paris in 1830, and Chicago in 1880). What is good about this perspective is that it puts many things in context. You see the design in the mosaic as well as the design in the individual tile. Barzun adds to this by masterfully explaining why things happened differently than expected. For example, Luther in 1517, the French aristocrats in 1789, and the Russian nobles in 1917 did not intend to start revolutions. Luther tacking his theses was the equivalent of publishing an article today. What made it different was that the printing press allowed these ideas to spread. Barzun adds another perspective that is useful: the intellectual spread of ideas and concepts. When thinking about the past, most of us focus on the greatest individual contributors. But in doing so, we may miss people who added a key element that allowed others to accomplish more in the future. I was impressed by how many essayists, artists, musicians, and philosphers he cited whose names were totally unfamiliar to me. Yet, I was enriched by understanding their contributions from reading this book. This gave me a new sense of how to think about history. I should confess that I was a modern French history major in college, so I should know more of these people than most will. I do not agree with Barzun on all of his points, and he would be surprised if you or I did. For example, I think he vastly underestimates the impact of economic, technological, and financial forces on these five centuries. Looking forward, I think he is even more blind to them. For example, the rise of the Internet will allow us all to be in contact. But what should we rely on each other for? You may be a great soccer player, but not so good at algebra. If I ask you to help me do some financial planning, you may inadvertently harm me even though you are a well-meaning, moral person. This question of when to trust will be critical to further development of civilization. If you would like to read another perspective on these centuries that favors the factors that Barzun underrepresents, you may find The Sovereign Individual helpful. I also don't think he makes his case for the superiority of western civilization over other cultures in the last 500 years. That would really require a different kind of book than this one is. This one focuses on Europe and North America. I suspect that he should have set a slightly less ambitious goal. So, what's it all add up to? You cannot help but gain by reading this book. You will better understand the arguments for and against all of our current issues. You will locate artists and writers whom you will enjoy. You will have a great deal more fun on your next trip to Europe, visiting all of the places he talks about. You will also develop your own perspective on what the last 500 years means for now and in the future. For example, I was astonished to realize how much worse the 20th century was in many ways than earlier centuries, even though I was aware of the relevant details. Our social idealism is declining at an enormous rate compared to our scientific and commercial progress. All of these things are a lot to get from one book. I suspect we will not see its equal in our lives. By the way, I suggest that you take this book in bite-sized pieces, unless you cannot stop yourself from going faster. The ideas will be easier to appreciate and connect, if you just read one essay at a time. Overcome your misconception, disbelief, procrastination, independence, wishful thinking, and tradition stalls by becoming a better thinker about these issues. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: A Really Excellent Book
Review: This book will really appeal to readers interested in the history of ideas within the Western world over the past 500 years. The author explores various themes, such as the concept of individualism, and traces them from Luther's Reformation to the present day. Not only is the subject matter fascinating, but the author's prose style is highly readable and accessable. He manages to make the study of history highly exciting. I found myself staying up half the night, reading this very compelling work.
Rating:
Summary: Close to incomparable
Review: Just to briefly note that Jacques Barzun's new book seems to have been completed in the middle 1990s, when he was in his late 80s! When published earlier this year, after some review period (and getting some good help at putting in a quite accurate and complete index, people and subjects), Mr. Barzun had moved towards his middle 90s.
Nevertheless, any reader will be hard put to find a more fully educated and civilized view of "western culture" since the Renaissance written for the good old educated layman. Mr. Barzun seems to have made a very conscious effort, however, in quite a few spots, to show us how very fully educated he is: giving us a few paragraphs or pages here and there on a large number of men and women probably unknown to most "educated laymen" who made big and often vast contributions to the West over the years. Also note that he clearly went out of his way to show that in many periods in the last 500 years women were readily admitted to the various culture clubs. That is to say that they were fully recognized for their talents, their knowledge, their minds. It was quite a good thing for me, and I think a good thing for all of us to see that the peculiar attitudes towards women we've seen during many of the years from Victorian times up to the present do not represent women's lot in history. It is at the very least interesting to think about how it came about that in relatively recent years, women have in many ways lost ground and are looking for "the rooms of their own" many of them had in the past. Be forewarned that Mr. Barzun's book is not a textbook nor is it a very ordered review of the last 500 or so years. It is rather one summing up (Mr. Barzun's biggest summing, I believe) of what he, one of the most knowing scholars and critics around today, has concluded about roughly what happened from there to here, and then to now. He makes a very good case for the decadence in his title. He is generally very fair and just with people and events, but, note again, please, that you will read his opinions, not a "balanced" "coverage" of "the period" <S> The book is well worth reading. His opinions are usually wonderful.
Rating: 
Summary: Grand subject, disappointing writing
Review: Mr. Barzun is one of America's grand intellectuals and original thinkers. I, therefore read his latest book, an ambitious project,to say the least, with much anticipation. While his approach is a refreshing departure from the relentless recounting of facts and events that characterize most history, I found his colloquial style distracting. Too, grammatical errors in the text left me with the impression that the manuscript had been published as dicated, without revision. After finishing it, I can only give this book 4 stars. It is brilliantly concieved, and magnificently executed, but in publication was separated from greatness by perhaps one more pass under the editor's pencil.
Rating: 
Summary: A Solid Survey of Western Civilization,a triumph for Barzun
Review: Barzun sets out an intellectual history of Western Civilization from the Renaissance to the victory of consumer culture, the "decadence" of the title. In its method, scope and conclusions it reflects the Barzun's interests and the prevalent ideas of the 1950's when Barzun made his reputation- readers looking for insights since Will Durant will not find them. I must disagree with some of my fellow reviewers; this book is delightful, but it is not unique, and there are other sources for this information. That said, I do recommend this book. Its orientation is not particularly conservative, as that term is usually understood. Barzun is chronicling the triumph of liberalism in all its forms, and his opponents, if any, are the people who have traditionally seated themselves on the right, at least in this country. If you enjoyed this book, and you should, then consider going on to Braudel, to Will Durant, to W.H.McNeill (spelling?),to Lisa Jardine, and to dozens of others. The fun doesn't have to stop when you finish "From Dawn to Decadence". Please consider reading the authors he cites too: there is a lifetime of pleasure in a bibliography.
Rating:
Summary: Thrilling! Exciting! Suspenseful!
Review: No doubt about it, this is Barzun's finest book. Characters from his other thrillers like "Darwin, Marx, Wagner" and "The Modern Researcher" reappear here, but in new and unsuspected guises. It's filled with excitement -- the scene where Jenny Marx and Hector Berloz leap from the helicopter before it crashes into the skyscraper is fantastic, and is matched only by the tautly written struggle in the lab between Charles and Richard for the virus. Wow! It's easy to see why this is a bestseller!
Rating: 
Summary: Miss the forest for the trees
Review: This book reads like a large compilation of short essays loosely bunched together thematically. Depending on your interests, some are interesting, some are not. Unfortunately, it is hard to keep track of the location and time period about which you are reading; and the sequence in which the book is presented is not logical or easy to follow.
Rating:
Summary: Perceptive and Enjoyable
Review: Only one of the mistakes cited by a previous reviewer is certainly in Barzun's book. James is an epistle as everyone knows, even if Luther is quoted as calling it "a gospel of straw" (p. 20). But on my reading, Barzun does not equate roll (p. 60), scroll (p. 231), volumen with codex, sheaf (p. 60), fastened sheets (p. 231); and in my copy of the book it is the potato that belongs to the nightshade family (p. 101). Not that there aren't some mistakes in From Dawn to Decadence, and one hopes they will be corrected in the next edition, which will retain Barzun's perceptive judgments and enjoyably compact prose.
Rating:
Summary: Startling and valuable
Review: Unlike much of the "must-read" nonfiction published in a year, Barzun's book is an absolute pleasure to read. He refuses to get bogged down in any single figure or school in his 500-year cultural tour, but instead disposes of thinkers in a paragraph, a page, or at most a few pages. At times, this can be frustrating, but more often it keeps your energy level high enough to move quickly through the text. Don't think of this as a weighty volume, but as a series of vignettes, each fascinating and capable of standing on its own. Like many reviewers, I am a little bit puzzled by the fiercely pessimistic tone Barzun adopts towards the end. However, this in no way compromises the pleasure of the book as a whole.
Rating:
Summary: Watching the beauty of Western culture unfold.
Review: I rarely read history books. I spent nearly a month reading this 800-page book. Not surprisingly, it took Barzun "a lifetime" to write this book. From both standpoints, it was definitely worth the time and effort, for Barzun triumphs at bringing the last 500 years of Western culture to life for his reader. One of the recurring points of this book is that there is cultural beauty buried in the silence of the past (p. 177). Western culture inches along not so much chronologically in this book as thematically. Barzun employs themes of emancipation, individualism, primitivism, abstraction, and self-consciousness to survey the last half millennium. Culture is not linear, Barzun observes, but rather "a web of many strands; none is spun by itself, nor is any cut off at a fixed date." Barzun divides his book into four parts. Part I covers Luther's Protestant Reformation (the "ripple" that became a "tidal wave") to Pascal, and then Burton's studies on melancholy. Part II then picks up with the monarchial revolution of the 17th Century, ending with the French Revolution in 1789. Part III starts with Romanticism and ends with Freud. Part IV begins with the bloodshed of WWI, and ends by merging seamlessly into the present. Along the way, Barzun's observations are fascinating. For instance, we witness the 1755 Lisbon earthquake resulting in a "brutal confirmation of disbelief" in a personal God (p. 378). We visit the Cafe Procope in Paris during the 1820s and 1830s, "the meeting place of artists and writers native and foreign." During the Industrial Revolution, we find Thomas Carlyle guarding his soul from the flood of "cheap and nasty" goods, while manufacturers and bankers are all hoping to "get rich" (p. 526). At page 620, we meet Walter Pater attempting to live his life with intensity, "to burn with a gem-like flame." Perhaps this is to say readers will find their own favorite sections of this book. One of mine was "Things Ride Mankind" (pp. 557-89), in which Barzun discusses in a single chapter the invention of the steam engine and railroad in 1830, Darwin's ORIGIN OF THE SPECIES in 1859 and the Victorian "debate on religion and science," the craze for "ghostly seances," Baudelaire's FLEURS DU MAL, bohemia, Florence Nightingale, and Karl Marx. Again, I normally don't read history books, and strayed outside my usual reading habits by purchasing this book. But as I approached page 800 of Barzun's big, enjoyable book of history, I actually found myself hoping for more, and wondering, too, what cultural beauty will unfold in the next 500 years. G. Merritt
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