A Concise History of the World Since 1945: States and Peoples

Description

This lively synthesis of global history since the end of World War II offers a gripping account of an interdependent world and the challenges facing individuals in the twenty-first century. The narrative is arranged around two key tensions: the struggle between socialism and free-market capitalism and the interaction between cultural fragmentation and the competing integrative force of globalization. Considering the historical experience of Africa, Asia and Latin America as well as the West, it addresses the ever-expanding gulf between the developed North and developing South, and the environmental impact of development on the planet’s delicate ecosystems. Authoritative and well-written, this is an ideal introductory guide for undergraduate and postgraduate students taking courses on global history since 1945. It is also a fascinating primer for anyone with an interest in global history and the issues affecting the globe today.       Contents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TIMELINE INTRODUCTION: DYNAMIC TENSIONS IN RECENT GLOBAL HISTORY Part I: From bipolar to multipolar world 1: THE COLD WAR IN GLOBAL CONTEXT, 1945–1991 TRIUMPH AND DISQUIET: THE HUMAN PROSPECT IN 1945 The fragile West Democracy on the defensive An optimistic view A pessimistic view The eclipse of Europe Intellectual disquiet EARLY SUPERPOWER TENSIONS A second front Eastern Europe Deepening Western suspicions The communist perspective The German dilemma The Marshall Plan The Truman Doctrine Berlin airlift NATO The nuclear arms race EXPANDING THE CIRCLE OF CONFLICT Communism in China Korean domino Red Scare Southeast Asia Washington intervenes An undeclared war Sino-Soviet split THE KHRUSHCHEV ERA, 1955–1964 Crackdown in Hungary The Berlin Wall To the brink: Cuba FROM DETENTE TO DENOUEMENT Seeking a way out Limiting weapons Soviet weaknesses Detente in shambles Gorbachev and Reagan POWER AND PRINCIPLE 2: THE END OF EMPIRE AND THE PROBLEM OF NEOCOLONIALISM DECOLONIZATION AND ITS DISCONTENTS Neocolonialism Empire as anachronism World War II as catalyst THE SOUTH ASIAN PRECEDENT Colonial legacies India and the world wars The tragedy of partition Enduring conflict Nonalignment Strategic reversals Democracy and development AFRICA’S HOPE AND MISFORTUNE Nationalist leaders The roots of instability Early prospects African commonalities? Ugandan xenophobia Kenya, Rhodesia, and white settlement French Algeria Apartheid in South Africa From independence to chaos Forced retreat: Portugal Ethnicity and the nation-state ANTICOLONIALISM AND NATIONALISM IN THE MIDDLE EAST Israel Egypt and the Arab leadership SOUTHEAST ASIA Indonesia THE OVERLOOKED EMPIRE: RUSSIA ASSESSING THE COLONIAL LEGACY Postcolonial relationships Nationalism and modernization since 1945 3: AN ELUSIVE NEW WORLD ORDER, 1991–2020 INTEGRATION AND FRAGMENTATION IN WIDER EUROPE Collapse of the Iron Curtain Soviet demise, Russian reprise European integration Southeastern Europe and the NATO consensus Straining the European idea America’s angry populist THE RESURGENCE OF CHINA The great anomaly The cultural revolution The return of Deng Xiaoping Tiananmen and beyond A multiethnic state Return to great power status North Korea: The last Stalinist state AMBIGUITY IN LATIN AMERICA Lingering challenges and the global market TERRORISM AND TROUBLED DEMOCRACY Terror states? A problematic ally Anti-authoritarianism and the Arab World Israel, Palestine, and Nationhood Democracy on the defensive Part II: Globalization and its discontents 4: WHEN BORDERS DON’T MATTER: DEVELOPMENT AND GLOBAL CULTURE CLASSICAL LIBERALISM IN CRISIS THE KEYNESIAN CONSENSUS Bretton Woods European integration The ascent of Japan Consumer culture NORTH AND SOUTH, RICH AND POOR Postcolonial economies Development economics India’s example Africa’s dilemma Latin America A debtors’ globe NEOLIBERAL ECONOMICS Oil shocks and stagnation Thatcher and Reagan Soviet blues Markets triumphant? GLOBALIZATION AND DISQUIET Multinational corporations A better world? A disconcerting conclusion 5: WHEN BORDERS DO MATTER: INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION AND IDENTITY STATES AND REFUGEES Cold War policy and refugees The first Gulf War Jews and Muslims South Asian emergencies Africa’s refugee predicament Europe’s recent refugees PROVISIONAL GUESTS Guest workers and remittances Labour recruitment in West Germany Britain and France Guest workers in the oil kingdoms East Asian migrants GLOBALIZATION AND IDENTITY The Chinese exception Mobile Latin Americans Identity in the US A common border GLOBAL EQUITY AND MIGRATION Prospects Part III: Body and spirit 6: SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND THE ENVIRONMENT POPULATION AND HEALING A new old age Prolonging human life Assault on disease Technology, medicine, and the quality of life The business of medicine The politics of medicine From eugenics to genetics ENERGY AND POWER The envied model for success Oil shocks? Emerging energy consumers The promise and perils of nuclear energy GOODS, SERVICES, AND CULTURE Electronic communications Shrinking the planet: Computers, Internet devices, and social media Shrinking the planet: Air travel DEBATE OVER THE ENVIRONMENT The unforeseen costs of progress Environmental awareness UNCERTAIN FUTURE 7: RELIGION, RIGHTS, AND CIVIL SOCIETY CHRISTIANITY BECOMES A GLOBAL FAITH The ecumenical movement Watershed at the Vatican A wider Christian community Roman Catholicism and the state in Latin America Social activism Conservative restoration The African imprint African-American liberation theology Confessional politics in Ireland Poland’s Catholic identity Catholicism at a crossroads Alternative religions in the West CHALLENGES IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD Islamism Islamist revolution in Iran Egypt Islam in the contemporary West INDIAN AND ISRAELI CONFESSIONAL POLITICS The rise of Hindu nationalism Sikh separatism Israel and Judaism EAST ASIAN TRANSITIONS China’s crucible Tradition and innovation in Japan RIGHTS, GENDER, AND RELIGION Gender equity Women and the faith traditions ANCIENT FAITH AND MODERN VALUES CONCLUSION: HOPE AND MISGIVING IN THE NEW CENTURY STATES BEFORE PEOPLES? A MEANINGFUL LIFE FURTHER READING INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1 Cold War theory US–Soviet relations Europe and Asia CHAPTER 2 Decolonization South and East Asia Middle East Africa CHAPTER 3 Recent Europe and America South and East Asia Latin America Recent Islam CHAPTER 4 Economic globalization Cities, consumers, and energy CHAPTER 5 General surveys Refugees CHAPTER 6 Medicine and technology Energy and environment CHAPTER 7 General surveys Islam Church and state Christianity CONCLUSION Index