Short 20th century
“The short 20th century” is a term coined by the historian Iván T. Berend , which takes into account the fact that centuries are extremely unsuitable as a division of historical epochs (since historical events do not adhere to dates ). This concept became popular after British historian Eric Hobsbawm used it in his well-read 1994 book The Age of Extremes .
The 20th century is referred to as “short” in this context, as the time up to the First World War was still very similar to the 19th century , while the war with its total mobilization and even more so the end of the war with its great upheavals (revolutions in Russia 1917, in Germany and Austria 1918) a new social and world order as well as the fall of the monarchy in several European countries brought about a political reorganization of parts of Central and Eastern Europe and the Balkans .
On the other hand - with the end of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the opening of many countries in the Eastern Bloc to the West since 1989 - the East-West conflict ( Cold War ) that had dominated the second half of the 20th century came to an end, so that it can be assumed that at this point in time a new era has begun. The period from 1914 to 1989 is also known as the "century of ideologies " (also: "the extremes" or "the opposites"), since in this relatively short period of time the rule of totalitarian ideologies such as fascism and communism has developed and come to an end. and scientific progress in the good and bad as ever showed ( atomic bomb , aviation , space travel and moon landing , medicine and medical technology , television and other mass media ).
Since the epoch, which is regarded as characteristic of the 20th century, only lasts around 75 years, the 20th century seems "too short" by around 25 years. Analogously, the period from 1789 to 1914/1918 is also understood as a unit and speaks of the “ long 19th century ”. These two centuries are separated by what is known as the “ great catastrophe of the 20th century ”, the First World War . The 20th century is also "the American century" ( the American century called), while that of the European colonial powers such as Britain and France (and from 1880 also Germany) dominated the 19th century is regarded as a "European Century" as the Around the turn of the century, the USA rose to become the economically most powerful nation in the world and, with the destruction of Europe in two world wars in 1917, or at the latest in 1945, also became the only major political power or superpower besides the Soviet Union .
The time after 1989
In 1989 the juxtaposition of ideologically shaped power blocs that had shaped the entire century ended, a time of a New World Order seemed to dawn. Instead, a new uncertainty has set in in world politics: Many see September 11, 2001 as the beginning of a new era shaped by the war on terrorism . In this context one speaks of the “ return of history ” (since in the 1990s many authors such as Francis Fukuyama expected an end to history in the traditional sense) or the “new world disorder”. The definition of 1989 as what felt like the end of the century dates back to before 2001.
The time after the end of the Cold War is long due to the politics of the USA as the only remaining superpower, the overcoming of the division of Europe through the eastward expansion of the European Union , the entry of emerging Asian economic and military powers such as China and India into world politics suppressed national, religious and cultural conflicts , but above all characterized by economic and cultural mass phenomena of globalization .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Eric Hobsbawm: The Age of Extremes. World history of the 20th century , Munich 1995, p. 11, ISBN 3-446-16021-3 .