Mark Mozower’s history book specifically pages 71-181 is about a struggle towards nationalism and the conflicts that arose between minorities and the majority groups in Central and Eastern Europe. It was after the World War I that the clamor for nations and states was high. Empires were divided and united with the concept of nationality. It was the solution that the majority ethnics and groups saw. However, instead of uniting the people through nations, it divided them even more. Minority ethnics and groups who are in the borders refused to be assimilated to the majority groups. Conflicts were allover with minorities trying to assert their identity and self-determination.
This era was not called the dark years for nothing. It was also during this time that the dominant race like the Germans clamored for the perfect race and thus, the Nazi Germany happened. This horror in the history of Europe is one of the gravest examples of intolerance. It exterminated the Jews which is a race they consider to be among the weakest and dirty, thus do no deserve to live. The did not only featured Nazi Germany but also other empires who were known to be fascist like Mussolini of Italy.
Aside from the tyrant leaders and empires, this era was also the time when the Soviet Union was successful in uniting the warring ethnic minorities in the Central and Eastern Europe. They were organized despite their diversity which was unlikely after the Great War. There were some clamors for self-determination which the reformists co-opted and further divided some of the peoples. One of the successes of the Soviet Union is their food productivity despite the widespread hunger at that time.
The whole book is the history of intolerance which were translated into fascism, dominance of majority over the minority, and the disrespect for the right to self-determination. A history of Europe’s dark years is a history of intolerance.
Work Cited
Mazower, Mark. “Dark Continent: Europe Twentieth Century.” New York: Vintage Books, 1998. Pdf file.
