--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Just six years into the 21st century, one…" description: "\"Just six years into the 21st century, one can say this is not shaping up to be anything like an American century. Rather, the U.S. seems much more like..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f0/martin-jacques-6623_21st-century_just-six-years-into-the-21st-century-one_2946039.png" --- # Just six years into the 21st century, one can say this is… ![“Just six years into the 21st century, one can say this is not shaping up to be anything like an American century. Rather, the U.S. seems much more likely to be faced with a very different kind of future: how to manage its own imperial decline.” quote by Martin Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f0/martin-jacques-6623_21st-century_just-six-years-into-the-21st-century-one_2946039.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f0/martin-jacques-6623_21st-century_just-six-years-into-the-21st-century-one_2946039.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f0/martin-jacques-6623_21st-century_just-six-years-into-the-21st-century-one_2946039.png) > “Just six years into the 21st century, one can say this is not shaping up to be anything like an American century. Rather, the U.S. seems much more likely to be faced with a very different kind of future: how to manage its own imperial decline.” [Martin Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-jacques/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. America faces a future of imperial decline rather than a dominant century. **In simple terms:** America may decline empire‑wise. Key Takeaway Plan for changing global role. Themes geopolitics decline future Mood analytical serious Type political historical When to use this quote - policy making - education - media analysis - business strategy Key Concepts history political science Questions to Reflect On - How should the US adapt to decline? - What alternatives to imperial power exist? A Different Perspective Predicting decline can be self‑fulfilling. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Decline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decline/) [Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) [Imperial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imperial/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [As best as can be determined, the world is now warmer than it has been at any point in the last two millennia, and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-kolbert/as-best-as-can-be-determined-the-world-is-now-warmer-than-it-has-been/) [Elizabeth Kolbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-kolbert/) > [Neoconservatism in all its pomp conceived - in the Project for a New American Century - that, following the collapse of the Soviet Union,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-jacques/neoconservatism-in-all-its-pomp-conceived-in-the-project-for-a-new/) [Martin Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-jacques/) > [The 21st century can and must be an American century. 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Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [The hope of Internet anarchists was that repressive governments would have only two options: accept the Internet with its limitless possibilities of spreading information,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-hope-of-internet-anarchists-was-that-repressive-governments-would/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [Maybe we need a tax credit for the poorest Americans to buy a laptop. Now, maybe that's wrong, maybe that's expensive, maybe we can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newt-gingrich/maybe-we-need-a-tax-credit-for-the-poorest-americans-to-buy-a-laptop/) [Newt Gingrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newt-gingrich/) > [The 20th century has been marked by cynicism, selfishness, greed, and the desire to please, all without changing the status quo. 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