The Prof Tells All

What The Prof Is Reading Now
How The Scots Invented The Modern World


Who formed the first literate Society?
Who invented our modern ideas of democracy & free market capitalism?
...The Scots.
I have only just picked this book up, but already, Historian Arthur Herman has shown that in the eighteenth & nineteenth centuries, Scotland made crucial contributions to literature, science, philosophy, education, commerce, theology, medicine, & politics.
Fantastic read, even if I do disagree with some of his bits on Calvinism...he presents it in lights which are often harsh and mean (which...perhaps it may sometimes be, to a limited extent), without ever properly examining the beauty and depth of the Reformed Faith which was so prevelant in Scotland at the height of Presbyterianism; although he does discuss the positive political ramifications of John Knox's influence.
It is interesting to note two things regarding Knox and his influence.
The first is the effect he had on the political state of things. His influence on the people created what may be considered one of the strongest democratic situations in the modern world. This was mostly due to his encouragement that the people ought rather to obey God than man. This engendered the idea that the King's power lay, not in his own right, but was vested in him by God. Each man was responsible for his own conscience, and not answerable to a priest, but to God on an individual basis.
This idea ultimately ran over into the political and economic realms, where individual voice and vote began being heard. Knox had, inadvertently, created a democratic system through his religious efforts.
The second thing to note concerning Knox's influence is the state of the Kirk (Church). The Kirk (or respective local Kirks) in Scotland had always been always tightly-knit, especially on the local level, because many remote areas were so cut off from the outside world. This meant de-centralization in religious and political circles, and emphasis on the local level. It was almost as if an entire Kingdom existed within one small area, so that the Scots had nowhere else to go for their needs than their own towns. The Kirk truly was a predecessor to the local governmental infrastructure of post-colonial America. Perhaps this is why many Scotch immigrants found it easy to transition from the Auld Countrie to the New World.
Overall: an excellent read, providing entertainment along with a superb amount of Historical information, giving proper honour and credence to the greatest Nation in the Worlde...
Scotland.

"When Britain first at Heaven's Command
Arose from out the azure main,
This was the charter of the land,
And guardian angels sung the strain:
Rule Britannia, Britannia rulese the waves!
Britons never shall be slaves."

- James Thompson