Enlightened Nationalism

Enlightened Nationalism provides the first synthesis in English of Prussian political culture from the Napoleonic era to the Revolution of 1848. Matthew Levinger challenges the conventional notion that Prussia lagged behind Western Europe in its political development, demonstrating that Prussian leaders embraced a distinctive program of political modernization in response to their country's defeat by Napoleon in 1806-1807. Building on the eighteenth-century tradition of enlightened absolutism, Prussian leaders attempted to unite a rationalized monarchy with a politically active "nation," thus mobilizing the populace to resist the French oppressors. The new culture of "enlightened nationalism" influenced the political theory and program of both liberals and conservatives in nineteenth-century Prussia. The book has important implications for understanding both subsequent German history and the history of nationalism in general. The author shows that the so-called authoritarian tendencies in Prussia's political culture resulted from its distinctive response to the challenges of the French Revolution and Napoleonic era, rather than from the persistence of premodern cultural or socioeconomic patterns. Likewise, by showing how nationalist activists drew on the cultural legacy of the Enlightenment, Levinger demonstrates that German nationalism cannot be understood as a uniquely pathological political phenomenon. Inspired by recent work exploring the role of discourse in historical change, the book analyzes how the word "nation" functioned in day-to-day debates and how this limited and shaped political options. Enlightened nationalism produced a mixed legacy: it promoted the reform of the education system, popular participation in local self-government, and administrative rationalization. But it also resulted in exaggerated fears of political dissent, reinforcing the authority of the monarchical state and inhibiting the formation of a vibrant system of parliamentary rule.

Focusing on Prussia from the Napoleonic era to the Revolution of 1848, this book boldly reinterprets the origins of German nationalism by tracing its links to 18th century Enlightenment thought.

Presents an interpretative synthesis that challenges the self-centered and "isolationist" historical narratives and educational canons prevalent in the many countries of Central and Southeast Europe. This title aims to confront 'mainstream' and seemingly successful national discourses with each other.

Presenting an analysis of the tension between nationalism and globalization in China since the beginning of the ‘reform and opening’ period in the late 1970s to the present day, this book makes a unique contribution to the on-going debate on the nature of Chinese nationalism. It shows how nationalism is used to link together key areas of policy-making, including economic policy, national unification and foreign policy. Hughes provides historical context to the debate by examining how nationalism became incorporated into the ideology of the Chinese Communist Party in the 1980s and the ways in which this strengthened and combined with globalization discourse through the domestic crisis of the Tiananmen Massacre and the external shock of the Cold War’s conclusion. The different perspectives towards this resulting orthodoxy are discussed, including those of the state and dissent in mainland China and the alternative views from Taiwan and Hong Kong. Based on Chinese sources throughout, this book offers a systematic treatment of Chinese nationalism, providing conceptual insights that allow the reader to grasp the complex weave of Chinese nationalist sentiment today and its implications for the future.

In this sixtieth anniversary edition of The Idea of Nationalism, Craig Calhoun probes the work of Hans Kohn and the world that first brought prominence to this unparalleled defense of the national ideal in the modern West. At its publication, Saturday Review called it an enduring and definitive treatise.... [Kohn] has written a book which is less a history of nationalism than it is a history of Western civilization from the standpoint of the national idea. This edition includes an extensive new introduction by Craig Calhoun, which in itself is a substantial contribution to the history of ideas. The Idea of Nationalism comprehensively analyzes the rise of nationalism, the idea's content, and its worldwide implications from the days of Hebrew and Greek antiquity to the eve of the French Revolution. As Calhoun explains, Kohn was particularly qualified to undertake this study. He grew up in Prague, the vigorous heart of Czech nationalism, participated in the Zionist student movement, studied the question of nationality in multinational cultures, spent the World War One years in Asian Russia, and later traveled extensively in the Near East studying the nationalist movements of western and southern Asia. The work itself is the product of Kohn's later years at Harvard University. In The Idea of Nationalism, Kohn presents the single most influential articulation of the distinction between civic and ethnic nationalism. This has shaped nearly all ensuing research and public discussion and deeply informed parallel oppositions of early and late, Western and Eastern varieties of nationalism. Kohn also argues that the age of nationalism represents the first period of universal history. Civilizations and continents are brought into ever closer contact; popular participation in politics is enormously increased; and the secular state is ever more significant.The Idea of Nationalism is important both in itself and because it so deeply sha

This essential text provides a clear and engaging introduction to the history of modern Germany. The updated and expanded new edition now takes the story back to 1789 and brings it right up to the present day, adopting a controversy-led approach throughout. Visual evidence, maps, documents and key event boxes support the text and aid learning.