Social Preconditions Of National Revival In Europe

Description

A classic work on nationalism, originally published thirty years ago and now reissued with a new preface by the author, Social Preconditions of National Revival in Europe provides excellent historical and political background to the profusion of recent nationalist movements in Eastern Europe. Miroslav Hroch develops and demonstrates empirically the concept of a three-stage process of nationalist mobilization: heightened cultural awareness of national distinctiveness among intellectuals and literati, a concept of nationalism as a political program, and mass mobilization on behalf of this doctrine.Hroch shows how the character of a state's nationalism is shaped by the timing of each of these phases in relation to other social transformations, especially economic changes. In addition, Hroch assesses which groups were the chief backers of nationalism, under what conditions, and at what stages.In his new preface, discussing why certain nationalist movements succeeded while others did not, the author argues that four factors contribute to the effectiveness of nationalist movements: (1) a strong sense of identity and common historical past within the group; (2) a certain level of vertical mobility (some educated people must come from the nondominant ethnic group without being assimilated); (3) an increasing level of social communication, including literacy; and (4) a nationally relevant conflict of interest.Amid all the speculation and theorizing about the nationalist currents in contemporary Eastern Europe (as well as in other regions), Hroch's empirically based study helps counter the impulse toward easy and spectacular generalizations and provides sound footing for an informedapproach to the topic.