After reading this, I defy even the most ardent nationalist to feel proud of the so-called 'achievements' of empire. Late Victorian Holocausts will redefine the way we think about the European colonial project. This is groundbreaking, mind-stretching stuff. Pyne, author of World Fireĭavis, a brilliant maverick scholar, sets the triumph of the late-nineteenth-century Western imperialism in the context of catastrophic El Nino weather patterns at that time. Mike Davis tells the story with zest, anger, and insight. The global climate meets a globalizing political economy, the fundamentals of one clashing with the fundamentalisms of the other. Kenneth Pomeranz, author of The Great Divergence Lots of us talk about writing 'world history' and 'interdisciplinary history': here is the genuine article. Amartya Sen * The New York Times *ĭavis's range is stunning.He combines political economy, meteorology, and ecology with vivid narratives to create a book that is both a gripping read and a major conceptual achievement. Publisher: Verso Books ISBN: 9781784786625 Number of pages: 480 Weight: 508 g Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 30 mm MEDIA REVIEWSĭavis has given us a book of substantial contemporary relevance as well as great historical interest.this highly informative book foes well beyond its immediate focus.
Davis argues that the seeds of underdevelopment in what later became known as the Third World were sown in this era of High Imperialism, as the price for capitalist modernization was paid in the currency of millions of peasants' lives. But the effects of drought were magnified in each case because of singularly destructive policies promulgated by different ruling elites. All were affected by the same global climatic factors that caused massive crop failures, and all experienced brutal famines that decimated local populations.
Late Victorian Holocausts focuses on three zones of drought and subsequent famine: India, Northern China and Northeastern Brazil. Examining a series of El Nino-induced droughts and the famines that they spawned around the globe in the last third of the 19th century, Mike Davis discloses the intimate, baleful relationship between imperial arrogance and natural incident that combined to produce some of the worst tragedies in human history.
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