The Eastern Origins of Western Civilisation

"Professor Hobson takes it one step further, arguing that, not only was there interdependence between Europe and Asia, Europe was for a long time the beneficiary of growth and development in the East. Apart from the usual list of paper, compasses, gunpowder and so forth, there were institutions coming in from the East, such as market laissez-faire and civilian rule. In Hobson’s view, East (in the broadest sense, including the Middle East, North Africa, Far East, South and Southeast Asia) was ahead of Western Europe until about 1800, and it laid the foundations for Western modernity. He suggested that the late rise of the West depended almost entirely on its free-riding on the East. This is by far the most audacious nail in the coffin of Eurocentricism. The reason is simply this: in the 21st century Asia will become a main engine of the global economy. Asia’s seemingly ‘new’ importance has puzzled and even frightened non-Asian societies. We have the obligation to inform all citizens of the globe that Asia’s (and China’s) recent miracle growth did not come from nowhere. Asia has always been a very important part of the world economy. So it is wise to ‘go with Asia’ instead of ‘ignoring Asia’."