The French Revolution and Industrial Revolution together inaugurated the modern era. But recent historical "revisionists" have divorced eighteenth-century material conditions from concurrent political struggles. This book's anti-teleological approach repudiates technological determinism to document the forging of a new relationship between technology and politics in Revolutionary France. It does so through the history of a particular artifact--the gun. Expanding the "political" to include conflict over material objects, Ken ...
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The French Revolution and Industrial Revolution together inaugurated the modern era. But recent historical "revisionists" have divorced eighteenth-century material conditions from concurrent political struggles. This book's anti-teleological approach repudiates technological determinism to document the forging of a new relationship between technology and politics in Revolutionary France. It does so through the history of a particular artifact--the gun. Expanding the "political" to include conflict over material objects, Ken Alder rethinks the nature of engineering rationality, the origins of mass production, and our interpretation of the French Revolution. Near the end of the Enlightenment, a cadre of artillery engineers transformed the design, production, and deployment of military guns. Part 1 shows how the gun, the first artifact amenable to scientific analysis, was redesigned by engineers committed to new meritocratic forms of technological knowledge and how the Revolutionaries and artillery officer Napoleon exploited their techno-social designs. Part 2 shows how the gun became the first artifact to be mass producedwith interchangeable parts, as French engineers deployed "objective" drawings and automatic machinery to enforce production standards in the face of artisanal resistance. And Part 3 places the gun at the center of a technocratic revolution led by engineers on the Committee of Public Safety, a revolution whose failure inaugurated modern capitalist techno-politics. This book offers a challenging demonstration of how material artifacts emerge as the negotiated outcome of political struggle.
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Add this copy of Engineering the Revolution: Arms and Enlightenment in to cart. $8.71, good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Dallas rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Dallas, TX, UNITED STATES, published 1999 by Princeton University Press.
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Very Good in Very Good dust jacket. 0691026718. Inscribed by the auhor; light shelfwear, blind stamp to title page, otherwise text clean and tight; 8vo 8"-9" tall; 496 pages.
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Very Good. Size: 104x20x152; Princeton University Press; Princeton, 1997. Hardcover. A Very Good, blue cloth binding with gilt lettering on spine, binding sturdy and intact, trace handling marks, previous owner embossed stamp bottom half title page, in a Near Fine, trace handling/scuff marks to panels, mild edge/corner wear, Mylar protected, Dust wrapper. A nice and clean copy. 8vo[octavo or approx. 6 x 9], 476pp., abbreviations, notes, bibliography, indexed, b&w illustrations. We pack securely and ship daily w/delivery confirmation on every book. The picture on the listing page is of the actual book for sale. Additional Scan(s) are available for any item, please inquire.
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Fine. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 496 p. Contains: Illustrations, black & white, Maps, Figures. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Add this copy of Engineering the Revolution: Arms and Enlightenment in to cart. $38.44, new condition, Sold by GreatBookPrices rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Columbia, MD, UNITED STATES, published 2010 by University of Chicago Press.
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New. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 496 p. Contains: Illustrations, black & white, Maps, Figures. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.