Acknowledgments
Pursuing answers to a big, important, puzzling question has been a deeply satisfying experience. I am grateful for freedom to follow where curiosity took me, for time to explore hunches as well as promising leads, and for opportunities to discuss with others what I found.
Many people offered intellectual stimulation and helpful criticism along the way. I particularly thank Gabriel Almond, Alexander George, Richard Roberts, and Paul Sniderman. I learned a great deal from my fellow instructors in the topic “The World Outside the West,” a two-quarter course taught at Stanford for many years and supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. My colleagues in this venture were Harumi Befu, Joel Beinin, George Collier, Peter Duus, James Fox, John Rick, Richard Roberts, Lyman Van Slyke, and Stephano Varese. Thanks also to Robert Bates, Frederick Cooper, Mariano Cuellar, Larry Diamond, Peter Ekeh, George Fredrickson, James Gibbs, Stephen Haber, Craig Heller, Renu Heller, A. H. M. Kirk-Greene, Stephen Krasner, Ali Mazrui, John Meyer, Michel Oksenberg, John Paden, Jack Rakove, John Rickford, Oscar Rosenbloom, John Saul, the late Aaron Segal, Charles Tilly, Tetsuro Toya, Barry Weingast, and Crawford Young. Karen Fung, archivist for the Hoover Institution’s Africa Collection, has been a continuing source of bibliographic leads. Yonatan Eyal, an undergraduate I quickly came to regard as a colleague, made several helpful suggestions. Research assistance was provided by Carol Rose, editorial assistance by Jennifer Daniell Bilissent. Maps for chapters 3 and 4 were prepared by Bayard Colyear III of Stanford Visual Arts Services. The map for chapter 7 was prepared by Melissa Mills.A happy by-product of teaching students is learning from them. I benefited greatly from reactions to my undergraduate lecture course “Colonialism and Nationalism in the Third World” and from papers for research seminars entitled “Theories of European Imperialism,” “Decolonization in Asia and Africa, 1940-80,” and “Legacies of Empire.”
A great university library is a priceless resource. An astonishingly high portion of the works I wanted to consult was accessible in Stanford’s Green Library and the Hoover Institution’s collections.
I thank those on library staffs who make books and journals available so readers and authors can quietly converse, even when separated by centuries and continents.I deeply appreciate the support of John Covell, senior editor at Yale University Press, and thoughtful, meticulous attention to the manuscript by Lawrence Kenney, senior manuscript editor. Critiques by several anonymous reviewers led me to recast some of my arguments, correct factual errors, and write more succinctly.
I remain responsible, of course, for errors that may remain as well as for contestable judgment calls.
My wife, Susan, has been wonderfully supportive while I worked on this project for more years than either of us anticipated. She helped me lead a more balanced life when research, writing, and editing threatened at times to unbalance it. My sons, Bruce and Brad, helped me see new things through their eyes. Brad cogently critiqued an earlier version of chapter 2.
This book is dedicated to the memory of my parents, Bradford S. Abernethy and Jean Beaven Abernethy. They introduced me early on to the world outside the United States. Their love of travel, their enthusiasm for cross-cultural encounters, their pleasure in helping others—these qualities shone through, positively affecting people around them. My parents set me on my career path in more ways than I know.
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