The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution Chapter Summary & Analysis - Part III, Chapters 19-21 Summary

Part III, Chapters 19-21 Summary and Analysis

Chapter 19 is called "The State Becomes a Church." Fukuyama examines the concept of the rule of law in world civilizations outside Europe. China had no strong religious authority and so, Fukuyama argues, had no strong concept of a rule of law. India had a strong tradition of religious rule of law, but the Brahmins who set it down and interpreted it were not well organized. In the Middle East, the rule of law was also based in religion. Secular law also developed to handle matters that fell outside the traditional religious law.

In Europe, the Church became independent from the political authority which allowed the state to develop its own similar and separate hierarchical structure. India had a hierarchical structure, but without a strong central authority. The Middle East had a strong religious authority, but it was so dependent on the political authority to uphold it that it never...
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