The Decline of the West

Taipan by rainer maGold
Came across the German version of the title (Der Untergang des Abendlandes) this morning and wondered what it meant, so I Googled it. Turns out to be a two volume written work by Oswald Spengler. Wikipedia has an article, and I found these excerpts illuminating.

According to Spengler, the meaningful units for history are not epochs but whole cultures which evolve as organisms. He recognizes eight high cultures: Babylonian, Egyptian, Chinese, Indian, Mexican (Mayan/Aztec), Classical (Greek/Roman), Arabian, Western or "European-American." Cultures have a lifespan of about a thousand years. The final stage of each culture is, in his word use, a 'civilization'.
...
 A 1928 Time review of the second volume of Decline described the immense influence and controversy Spengler's ideas enjoyed in the 1920s: "When the first volume of The Decline of the West appeared in Germany a few years ago, thousands of copies were sold. Cultivated European discourse quickly became Spengler-saturated. Spenglerism spurted from the pens of countless disciples. It was imperative to read Spengler, to sympathize or revolt. It still remains so."

Via Monday Evening and The TOF Spot, worth reading itself.

P.S. I'm not sure if the picture has anything to do with the subject, but Google served it up, and I kind of like it, so here it is.