The Decline of The West - Test of The Theory

Test of The Theory

Some, such as Amaury de Riencourt in The Coming Caesars, maintain that Spengler's predictions have been borne out as the United States has pushed aside the other powers of the West and established a Pax Americana. De Reincourt's work suggested that the United States of America would enter its Caesarian phase in the 1990s. They also point to trends in arts and philosophy.

On the other hand, it has been argued that Spengler believed that the West's final, "Caesaristic" phase was destined to be fulfilled under German domination; Germany's defeat in the two World Wars has therefore prevented that transition from taking place. Spengler did of course warn that Hitler was not the right man to guide Europe into the preliminary stages of Caesarism; he thought that Hitler would badly mishandle the whole process.

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