Project Gutenberg 2022-06-01 Public domain in the USA. 148 Balfour, Arthur James 1848 1930 Balfour, Arthur James Balfour, Earl of Balfour, A. J. (Arthur James) 08019225 Decadence Henry Sidgwick memorial lecture, 1908 $aUnited Kingdom :$bThe University Press,$c1908. Thomas Frost and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) "Decadence" by Arthur James Balfour is an exploratory philosophical essay delivered as a lecture at Newnham College in the early 20th century. This thoughtful treatment delves into the concept of decadence, focusing not on its artistic or literary manifestations, which are often discussed, but rather its implications for political and national decline. Balfour's discussion is framed within the context of historic civilizations and the greater questions of societal evolution, stability, and potential decay. In the essay, Balfour presents a series of reflections on the nature of civilizational history through the lens of decadence, pondering whether it is an inevitable part of the life cycle of nations, akin to aging in individuals. He investigates the factors that may contribute to the decline of great empires, specifically referencing the Roman Empire as a case study to illustrate the complexities inherent in identifying the reasons behind such profound shifts. He contemplates the nuances between decadence as a discrete process versus more apparent misfortunes like war or famine that often accompany societal downfalls. Ultimately, Balfour invites readers to consider the intricate interplay of historical, cultural, and social elements that contribute to the rise and fall of civilizations, leaving them with a sense of caution about the future trajectory of societies as they navigate the currents of progress and potential decline. (This is an automatically generated summary.) 20220422191743balfour 1908 GB Reading ease score: 42.6 (College-level). Difficult to read. en Political science Nationalism HM Text Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches Category: History - Other Category: Philosophy & Ethics 86768 2025-07-27T06:22:05.342554 text/html 62715 2024-10-18T22:15:25 text/html 338829 2025-07-27T06:22:08.298603 application/epub+zip 337150 2025-07-27T06:22:06.390569 application/epub+zip 139055 2025-07-27T06:22:05.761555 application/epub+zip 767612 2025-07-27T06:22:09.814591 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 756439 2025-07-27T06:22:07.874549 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 602769 2022-09-30T17:44:13.979950 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 75308 2025-07-27T06:22:05.204566 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 55410 2024-10-18T22:15:25 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 17350 2025-07-27T06:22:09.957550 application/rdf+xml 14211 2025-07-27T06:22:06.017592 image/jpeg 1995 2025-07-27T06:22:05.882577 image/jpeg 337263 2025-07-27T06:22:05.356591 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia