Our Western World, Volume 2: From the Scientific Revolution to the Present

Our Western World Book Two Biographies 

Chapter 1 The Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment 
New Science and the Enlightenment 
Enlightenment Philosophes 
The Enlightenment and England 
Conclusion 

Chapter 2 17th- and 18th-Century European Absolutism 
French Absolutism 
The Sun King 
The Significance of Baroque Art 
Russian Absolutism 
Prussian and Austrian Absolutism 

Chapter 3 Crisis and Opportunity: The American and French Revolutions 
Prelude to Revolution 
The American Revolutionary War 
Trouble in France 
The French Revolution, Restrained 
The French Revolution and Radicalism 
Enter Napoleon Bonaparte 
The Demise of Napoleonic France 
Chapter 3 In Focus Essay: Smallpox in the American Revolution 
Chapter 3 In Focus Essay: British Generals Quandaries in the American Revolution

Chapter 4 The Age of the Machines and Movements 
Great Britain’s Path of Industrial Superiority 
Liberalism and Political Reactions to the Industrial Revolution 
The Development and Impact of Romanticism 
The Rise of Socialism 
Conclusion

Chapter 5 The Transitions of a Modern Age 
Modern Warfare: Europe and the United States 
The Influence of Innovations 
The Organization of Work 
The Primacy of Nationalism 
Marxism and Labor Unrest 
The Spanish American War 
Anti-Semitism and Class Resentment
Tradition vs. the Modern Mind 

Chapter 6 The Path through the Great War 
Prelude to War 
The Spark 
Western Front Stalemate 
Mobilizing the Home Front 
Eastern Front and the Russian Revolution 
Germany Defeated 
Peace? 

Chapter 7 Economic and Political Rumblings 
The Soviet Union: Lenin and Stalin 
Fascism in Italy 
Weimar Germany 
Hitler and the National Socialists 
Hitler as Chancellor and Dictator 
The Great Depression and Regional Conflicts 
The Death of Versailles and Appeasement 
Chapter 7 In Focus Essay: The Motion Picture Production Code (1930) 
Chapter 7 In Focus Essay: The Comedy Genre during the Great Depression 

Chapter 8 World War II 
Act One in the European and Pacific Theaters 
Act Two in Europe 
Act Two in the Pacific 
The Home Fronts: Different Dynamics, Challenges, and Tragedies 
Conclusion: A Complex Historical Legacy 

Chapter 9 The First Three Decades of the Cold War 
Early Cold War Defense and Diplomatic Strategies 
The 1950s Cold War: Lessons and Transitions
The 1960s Cold War Era 
The Early 1970s Cold War: Endings and New Beginnings 
Thirty Years of Major Cold War Cultural Changes 
Conclusion 
Chapter 9 In Focus Essay: Hermann Hesse: Modern Romantic 
Chapter 9 In Focus Essay: The Beat Generation: A Literary Revolution 

Chapter 10 The Late Cold War through the 21st Century 
The Final Stages of the Cold War 
Transitioning Beyond the Cold War 
The Global War on Terrorism 
Cultural, Social, Scientific, and Technological Developments 
Conclusion 

Index