 Alexander J. Motyl, Is Everything Empire? Is Empire Everything? If ever there was a binary opposition, Niall Ferguson and Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri are it. Despite their many differences in their recent books, they are equally confused about empire. The four books under review are riddled with contradictions that stem from their authors¡¯ inability to come to grips with the concept of empire. As a result, they prove the very opposite of what they intended to prove. How have such books garnered such large readerships, and how should serious students of comparative politics proceed in studying empire? Students of empire can draw on an enormous, serious literature and research agenda. |