Progress and Its DiscontentsEvents of the past two decades have challenged many of the fundamental beliefs, institutions, and values of modern western culture--the culture of "progress." Are science and technology really progressive and beneficial? Have they led to the enhancement of welfare, greater hapiness, and moral immprovement? I s the continued growth of material productivity possible? Desirable? Are the institutions of progress viable? Progress and Its Discontents assembles the views on progress of some of America's leading humanists, scientists, and social scientists. Citing disappointed expectations of progress in spheres from science to morals and politics, and the many problems created or left untouched by progress, the editors conclude that the term no longer refers to "an inevitable sequence of improvements" but rather to "an aspiration and compelling obligation." |
Contents
Introduction GABRIEL A ALMOND MARVIN CHODOROW | 1 |
Historical Ideological and Evolutionary Aspects | 17 |
GEORG G IGGERS | 41 |
ALFRED G MEYER | 67 |
CRAWFORD YOUNG | 75 |
Ideas of Progress in the Third World | 83 |
FRANCISCO J AYALA | 106 |
PART II | 125 |
Can Technology Assure Unending Material Progress? | 281 |
NATHAN ROSENBERG | 301 |
Poverty and Progress | 319 |
PART IV | 333 |
AARON WILDAVSKY | 361 |
G BINGHAM POWELL | 375 |
SAMUEL H BARNES | 403 |
PART V | 427 |
JOHN T EDSALL | 135 |
GERALD FEINBERG | 161 |
DAVIS | 182 |
GERALD HOLTON | 202 |
MARC J ROBERTS | 226 |
Progress Paradigms | 240 |
PART III | 249 |
MURRAY KRIEGER | 449 |
ELLIOTT | 470 |
MARTIN E MARTY | 482 |
DANIEL BELL | 501 |
An Ethical Appraisal | 524 |
Contributors | 547 |
Other editions - View all
Progress and Its Discontents Gabriel A. Almond,Garry R. Marvin,Roy Harvey Pearce Limited preview - 2023 |
Progress and Its Discontents Gabriel A. Almond,Garry R. Marvin,Roy Harvey Pearce Limited preview - 2022 |
Common terms and phrases
achieved activities Adam Ferguson advance Albert Einstein American argued argument become behavior belief biology civilization concept concern Condorcet contemporary countries critical culture democracy democratic discovery economic growth effects Einstein elite energy Enlightenment environment essay ethical evolution evolutionary experience faith fundamental future gene genetic Gerald Feinberg goals Hegel historians Houyhnhnm human idea of progress ideology improvement income increase individual industrial institutions intellectual J.B. Bury knowledge Kuznets curve liberal liberal democracy Marx Marxism mass material Max Weber ment modern moral nature nineteenth century nomic objective organisms percent phenomena philosophers physicists physics political population possible postmaterialism problems production prog programs quantum mechanics question religion ress Ronald Inglehart scientific scientists secular sense sequence social science society species structure subatomic particles theory Third World thought tion University Press utopia values welfare Western York