La fondation
Rockefeller
et la naissance
de l’universalisme
philanthropique
américain
Ludovic Tournès
This article examines the history of the development of
American universalism starting from the premise that the major philan~thropic foundations, having emerged early on the international scene, are a
locus where it crystallizes. Starting in the 1890s, the United States possessed
the means to achieve their international ambition. This is also when univer~salism was forged among the new elites, of which the large philanthropic
societies are an emanation, which is based on the certainty that the United
States held the key to the future of humanity. It matured between the 1890s
and the interwar period, to demonstrate its full force after 1945,due to the
superpower status the U.S. had then acquired. The action of foundations
should be resituated in this perspective: with the early 20th century, they
devised a world policy that closely combined the certainty of embodying the
general interest and a desire to spread the American model. The Rockefeller
Foundation demonstrates this in emblematic fashion.
• La matrice progressiste
— Intérêt public
— Progrès
— Santé
• La cristallisation de l’universalisme philanthropique
— L'Amérique latine et l'Asie
— La Première guerre mondiale et l’intervention en Europe
— « Marchands de lumière »
• Du progressisme à l’internationalisme
— La construction d'un réseau mondial
— La collaboration avec la Société des Nations