Why the West Rules—for Now: The Patterns of History, and What They Reveal About the Future

A New York Times Notable Book of the Year: "remarkable . . . Anyone who does not believe there are lessons to be learned from history should start right here" ( The Economist ).

Around 1750, English entrepreneurs unleashed the energies of steam and coal, and the world was forever changed. The emergence of factories, railroads, and gunboats propelled the West's rise to power in the nineteenth century, and the development of computers and nuclear weapons in the twentieth century secured its global supremacy. Now in the twenty-first century, many worry that the emerging economic power of China and India spells the end of the West as a superpower. In order to understand this possibility, we need to look at history. Why has the West dominated the globe for the past two hundred years?

Archaeologist and historian Ian Morris offers surprising new answers. It is not, he reveals, differences of race or culture, or even the strivings of great individuals, that explain Western dominance. It is the effects of geography on the everyday efforts of ordinary people as they deal with crises of resources, disease, migration, and climate. As geography and human ingenuity continue to interact, the world will change in astonishing ways, transforming Western rule in the process.

Why the West Rules—for Now spans fifty thousand years of history, bringing together the latest findings across disciplines—from ancient history to neuroscience—not only to explain why the West came to rule the world but also to predict what the future will bring.

"Morris is a lucid thinker and a fine writer." ―Orville Schell, The New York Times Book Review

"An excellent and amusing survey." ―Jane Smiley, The Washington Post