The Unbound Prometheus

''The Unbound Prometheus: Technological Change and Industrial Development in Western Europe from 1750 to the Present'' is an

economic history Economic history is the study of history using methodological tools from economics or with a special attention to economic phenomena. Research is conducted using a combination of historical methods, statistical methods and the Applied economics ...

book by David S. Landes. Its focus is on the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

in England and its spread to the rest of

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's extent varies depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the Western half of the ancient Mediterranean ...

. Its principal contribution is the argument in favor of the

Second Industrial Revolution The Second Industrial Revolution, also known as the Technological Revolution, was a phase of rapid Discovery (observation), scientific discovery, standardisation, mass production and industrialisation from the late 19th century into the early ...

. The book was first published in 1969 by

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...

. It first appeared in the Cambridge Economic History of Europe, Volume VI in 1965, but it was expanded for the 1969 edition. The book deals with innovations and inventions that brought about modernization and technological developments in

beginning in the 18th century. The book explores why Europe was the first to industrialize and argues that industrialization is just one part of a larger process of modernization during which a culture significantly changes its social order, institutional order, attitudes, values, and government in order to promote and accommodate further change. In addition, the book also discusses the economic boom that has occurred since the industrial revolution began and argues that only through continued industrialization can the world sustain itself economically in the coming years. The book is considered by many to be one of the most significant books on the economic history of industrialization in Western Europe . It is considered to be one of the preeminent works on the economic history of

industrialization Industrialisation (British English, UK) American and British English spelling differences, or industrialization (American English, US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an i ...

in Western Europe. It has been reprinted numerous times and was published in a second edition with new commentary by Landes in 2003. 1969 books Books about the Industrial Revolution {{poli-philo-book-stub