History 309 – CONTEMPORARY EUROPE – October 10, 2005  

EUROPE IN CRISIS – THE APPROACH OF WAR  

Note: Rarely had Europe endured such a desperate time as the 1930s.  The economy was in ruins; violent forms of political extremism flourished; there was a pervasive sense that a Second World War was on the horizon.  And yet, this awful time was also a time of  some extraordinary cultural achievements.  

TERMS TO KNOW  

1. “Loss of social momentum”
2. political refugees
3. Julien Benda, The Betrayal of the Intellectuals
4. Antonio Gramsci
5. Georg Lukács
6. J. M. Keynes, The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money
7. Thomas Mann
8. André Malraux
9. George Orwell
10. Pope Pius XI, Quadragesimo Anno
11. Gabriel Marcel, Emmanuel Mounier, Jacques Maritain
12. Karl Barth
13. Triumph of the Will
14. Bertolt Brecht
15. Ortega y Gasset, “Revolt of the Masses”
16. Huizinga, “Shadow of Tomorrow”
17. Silone, “Bread & Wine”
18. Koestler, “I Was Ripe”
19. Berdyaev, “Modern Ideologies”
20. Dawson, “Failure”

 

QUESTIONS  

1. How in heaven’s name had Europe gotten into such a dreadful condition?  Was there something morally, or spiritually, and culturally wrong?  Consider especially our readings from Perry (# 15 – 20, above).  Select at least THREE of them – what do they say about Europe’s condition?  Do you agree or disagree with them?  Why?

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Modified by:  H.  Kamerling