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The Shape of the New
- Four Big Ideas and How They Made the Modern World
- Narrated by: Stephen McLaughlin
- Length: 20 hrs and 38 mins
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The Shape of the New
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Summary
This panoramic book tells the story of how revolutionary ideas from the Enlightenment about freedom, equality, evolution, and democracy have reverberated through modern history and shaped the world as we know it today.
A testament to the enduring power of ideas, The Shape of the New offers unforgettable portraits of Adam Smith, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, Charles Darwin, and Karl Marx - heirs of the Enlightenment who embodied its highest ideals about progress - and shows how their thoughts, over time and in the hands of their followers and opponents, transformed the very nature of our beliefs, institutions, economies, and politics. Yet these ideas also hold contradictions. They have been used in the service of brutal systems such as slavery and colonialism, been appropriated and twisted by monsters like Stalin and Hitler, and provoked reactions against the Enlightenment's legacy by Islamic Salafists and the Christian Religious Right.
The Shape of the New argues that it is impossible to understand the ideological and political conflicts of our own time without familiarizing ourselves with the history and internal tensions of these world-changing ideas. With passion and conviction, it exhorts us to recognize the central importance of these ideas as historical forces and pillars of the Western humanistic tradition. It makes the case that to read the works of the great thinkers is to gain invaluable insights into the ideas that have shaped how we think and what we believe.
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What listeners say about The Shape of the New
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- anna Kriger
- 12-12-15
Amazing!
Would you consider the audio edition of The Shape of the New to be better than the print version?
yes
What did you like best about this story?
It puts the current political ideas and forces into perspective. A lot of great ideas and historical detail makes this book a must have for 2016.
What does Stephen McLaughlin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
a wise voice
Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
it made me think, and it made me amazed about how much we take in our daily life for granted. Societies are based on ideas, so its great to think about what ideas we want to keep and which need a re-think
Any additional comments?
loved every minute! Thank you!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 06-03-21
In depth but fascinating
Not a book for the casual reader/listener but certainly one filled with though-provoking pages. It took me quite a while to get through it but it certainly got me thinking more about the ideas that underpin our societies.
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