And we are quite prepared to leave the others to cling to the imperial, the Roman and canonical tradition. History is not an uninterrupted natural development. Again and again development has stopped in one particular territory only to emerge somewhere else. Egypt, the Near East, the Mediterranean shores and Central Europe have all in turn been centers of historical development. In Egypt, civilization begins with the primitive tribe.
Development starts afresh in Syria, in Persia and in Palestine.
A new civilization then comes to life in Greece. Always through the tribe. Slowly it reaches the level of the village commune and then to the republican cities. In these cities civilization reaches its zenith. But the East communicates its poisonous breath, its traditions of despotism.