足足有两个世纪，雅典人拥有着经济增长的绝佳条件：民主制度、财产权、自由市场以及一个自由的中产阶级，可是为何他们在这一时期仍然处于极度贫困之中？

世界经济增长的分水岭大约出现在19世纪。19世纪前，大多数人的生活状态就是“贫穷和短缺”，凶杀比意外死亡更常见，绑架是种谋生之道。甚至，英国首相如果不携带剑、匕首或手枪，绝不敢贸然上街。但在19世纪后，大多数人的生活都发生了翻天覆地的变化。

这一切究竟是如何发生的？为了回答这一重大问题，本书作者威廉•伯恩斯坦为自己设定了一个任务：探索19世纪早期引发当代经济起飞的文化和历史因素。一方面，作者独具匠心地采集了众多引人入胜的历史故事，让人读来兴趣盎然。另一方面，他提出了一个理论框架，能够解释国家何以富裕或贫穷，何以民主或集权，何以弱小或强大，甚至还能够回答一国国民是否对其生活状态感到满意。

这个解释框架包括财产权、科学理性主义（或科学方法）、资本市场、交通和通讯技术改善这四大因素，在它们的共同作用下，现代财富增长逐渐生根发芽。

'...a tour de force...prepare to be amazed' - John C. Bogle, founder and former CEO, The Vanguard Group. A bold new look at the continuing era of prosperity - how we got here, and where we could be headed. Why didn't the Florentines invent the steam engines and flying machines that Da Vinci sketched? What kept the master metallurgists of ancient Rome from discovering electricity? "The Birth of Plenty" takes a fascinating new look at the key conditions that had to be in place before world economic growth - and the technological progress underlying it - could occur, why those pathways are still absent in many parts of today's world, and what must be done before true, universal prosperity can become a reality.'Not long after 1820, prosperity began flowing in an ever increasing torrent; with each successive generation, the life of the son became observably more comfortable, informed, and predictable than that of the father. This book will examine the nature, causes, and consequences of this transformation...' - From the Introduction."The Birth of Plenty" doesn't mean to suggest that nothing of note existed before 1820. What "The Birth of Plenty" suggests - and supports with irrefutable fact and groundbreaking analysis - is that, from the dawn of recorded history through 1820, the 'mass of man' experienced essentially zero growth, either in economic standing or living standards. It was only in the third decade of the nineteenth century that the much of the world's standard of living began to inexorably and irreversibly improve, and the modern world was born. But what changed, and why then?Noted financial expert and neurologist William Bernstein isolates the four conditions which, when occurring simultaneously, constitute an all-inclusive formula for human progress: Property rights - creators must have proper incentives to create scientific rationalism - innovators must be allowed to innovate without fear of retribution; Capital markets - entrepreneurs must be given access to capital to pursue their visions; transportation/communication - society must provide mechanisms for effective communication of ideas and transport of finished products. Beyond just shining a light on how quickly progress occurs once the building blocks are in place, however, "The Birth of Plenty" examines how their absence constitutes nothing less than a prescription for continued human struggle and pain.Why do so many parts of the world remain behind, while others learn to adapt, adopt, and move forward? What must long-troubled nations do to pull themselves from the never-ending spiral of defeatism? "The Birth of Plenty" addresses these timely and vital questions head-on, empirically and without apology, and provides answers that are both thought-provoking and troubling. "The Birth of Plenty" frames the modern world's prosperity - or, in far too many cases, continuing lack of prosperity - in terms that are ingenious yet simple, complex yet easily understood. Entertaining and provocative, it will forever change the way you view the human pursuit of happiness, and bring the conflicts of both the world's superpowers and developing nations into a fascinating and informative new light.