Are we Rome? the fall of an empire and the fate of America

The rise and fall of ancient Rome has been on American minds from the beginning of our Republic. Depending on who's doing the talking, the history of Rome serves either as a triumphal call to action, or a dire warming of imminent collapse. Esteemed editor and author Murphy ventures past the pundits'...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Murphy, Cullen
Format: Books Print Book
Language:English
Published: Boston : Houghton Mifflin Co., 2007.
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Summary:The rise and fall of ancient Rome has been on American minds from the beginning of our Republic. Depending on who's doing the talking, the history of Rome serves either as a triumphal call to action, or a dire warming of imminent collapse. Esteemed editor and author Murphy ventures past the pundits' rhetoric to draw nuanced lessons about how we might avoid Rome's demise. Working on a canvas that extends far beyond the issue of an overstretched military, Murphy reveals a wide array of similarities between the two empires: the blinding, insular culture of our capitals; the debilitating effect of corruption; the paradoxical issue of borders; and the weakening of the body politic through various forms of "privatization." Most pressingly, he argues that we most resemble Rome in the burgeoning corruption of our government and in our arrogant ignorance of the world outside--two things that are in our power to change.--From publisher description.
Physical Description:262 pages ; 22 cm
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references (pages 251-262).
ISBN:9780618742226
0618742220
Author Notes:Cullen Murphy is the editor at large at Vanity Fair and the former managing editor of the Atlantic Monthly . He is the author of Are We Rome?, The Word According to Eve , and the essay collection Just Curious .