Do Americans live in a liberal capitalist society, where evenhanded competition rules the day, or a society in which big money, private security, and personal relations determine key social outcomes? Vladimir Shlapentokh and Joshua Woods argue that the answer to these questions cannot be found among the conventional models used to describe the nation. Offering a new analytical tool, the authors present a provocative explanation of the nature of contemporary society by comparing its essential characteristics to those of medieval European societies.
Their feudal model emphasizes five elements: the weakness of the state and its inability to protect its territory, guarantee the security of its citizens, and enforce laws; conflicts and collusions between and within organizations that involve corruption and other forms of illegal or semilegal actions; the dominance of personal relations in political and economic life; the prevalence of an elitist ideology; and the use of private agents and organizations for the provision of safety and security. Feudal America urges readers to suspend their forward-thinking and futurist orientations, question linear notions of social and historical progression, and look for explanations of contemporary social problems in medieval European history.
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motw/Feudal America_ Elements of the - Vladimir Shlapentokh.epub

motw/Feudal America_ Elements of the - Vladimir Shlapentokh.pdf

00 Front_Shlapentokh

Shlapentokh, Vladimir

Owner

Metalmark

University Park, Pa, Pennsylvania, 2011

United States, United States of America

1, PS, 2011

uuuu

producers:
Acrobat Distiller 8.0.0 (Windows)

Memory of the World Librarian: Slowrotation

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Do Americans live in a liberal capitalist society, or a society in which big money, private security, and personal relations determine key social outcomes? Shlapentokh and Woods argue that the answer to these questions cannot be found among the conventional models. Offering a new analytical tool, the authors present a provocative explanation of the nature of contemporary society by comparing its essential characteristics to those of medieval European societies. Their feudal model emphasizes five elements: the weakness of the state to protect its citizens, conflict and collusion between and within organizations that involve corruption and other forms of illegal or semilegal actions, the dominance of personal relations in political and economic life, the prevalence of an elitist ideology, and the use of private agents and organizations to provide safety and security. Feudal America urges readers to look for explanations of contemporary social problems in medieval European history

Front Cover 1
Title Page 4
Copyright 5
Table of Contents 6
Preface 8
Acknowledgments 12
Chapter One: The Feudal Model in Social Analysis 14
Chapter Two: Feudal, Liberal, and Authoritarian Models as Tools for Analyzing the Middle Ages and Contemporary American Society 31
Chapter Three: Big Money and Corporations as Promoters of Feudal Tendancies 46
Chapter Four: The Feudal Model and the Organizational Level of Analysis 69
Chapter Five: Private Coercion 91
Personal Relations in American Politics and Business 112
Conclusion 135
References 146
Index 176
Back Cover 184

The feudal model in social analysis : from medieval Europe to contemporary America
Feudal, liberal, and authoritarian models as tools for analyzing the middle ages and contemporary American society
Big money and corporations as promoters of feudal tendencies
The feudal model and the organizational level of analysis
Private coercion : a feudal aspect of contemporary American society
Personal relations in American politics and business : a feudal phenomenon.

"Uses a feudal model to analyze contemporary American society, comparing its essential characteristics to those of medieval European societies"--Provided by publisher.

2025-10-27