Liberal Nationalism in Central Europe by Stefan s> Auer (review)

Abstract

REVIEWS 57I at the height of its internationalpower and influence. Today, the same assertions , however, sound hollow, if not psychotic. From Sarkisyanz'sstudy, it emerges that the break-upof the Soviet Union in i99i signifies,perhaps, less the end of socialism or Communism than the bankruptcy of the fantasy dreamt by dozens of prominent Russian thinkers that Russia will one day become the moral and political leader or even saviour of the world. While Sarkisyanz'ssecond edition is, with more than IOOO references,certainlywell -annotated,it stillsuffersfrom some strangeomissions.For instance, one wonders why Sarkisyanzfails to mention, among severalother important studies of Russian nationalism, Peter Duncan's recent book on Russian messianismthat had paid extensive tribute to the firstedition of Sarkisyanz's book. Also, while Daniel Rancour-Laferrieris singledout for explicitcriticism, Sarkisyanz seems to be unaware of Rancour-Laferrier'sbook on Russian nationalism where a number of the issues that Sarkisyanzis concerned with are discussed at some length too. Many other recent relevant books and papers on pre- and post-revolutionaryRussian national thought are ignored as well. In spite of such lapses, readerswill find Sarkisyanz'sinvestigationrich and stimulating.It is to be hoped that his book findsa receptiveaudience in Russia and may even have a sobering effect on those Russian intellectualswho still expresshopes that Russia will one day become the world'scollective messiah. NationalTarasShevchenko Universiy ofAyiv A. UMLAND Auer, Stefan. Liberal Nationalism in Central Europe. Contemporary Russia and East Europe Series. RoutledgeCurzon, London and New York, 2004. xii + 232 pp. Notes. Bibliography.Index. C6o.oo. EVEN in the aftermathof the recent EU enlargement,the studyof nationalism in Europe remains clouded by the geographical determinism of 'West' vs. 'East'.Such determinismis often seen as takingits cue fromHans Kohn's I944 work TheIdeaof Nationalism, but it can be traced even further back, being clearly apparent, for instance, in the minority protection system adopted by the League of Nations between the two World Wars. Until now, it has been common to portray Western Europe as the natural home of an enlightened 'civic' nationalism that is broadly supportive of democratic development; Eastern Europe, by contrast, is still regarded as being inherentlypredisposed towardsthe kind of 'backward'and intolerantethnocentricnationalismthat is inimical to any vision of a stable liberal democratic order. Workschallenging this long-standingstereotypeare still comparativelyfew and far between, and in this regardLiberal Nationalism in Central Europe (the title is highly revealingof the message) representsa welcome and highly significantcontributionto the literature. Auer's work analyses post-Communist nationalism in Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia,which are each dealt with separatelywithin informative case study chapters. In his overall introductionto the theme, the author argues that to adhere to a conception of 'the West vs. the Rest' is highly 572 SEER, 84, 3, JULY 2006 misleading when it comes to studying the region's ongoing transformation. Instead, one should acknowledge that different conceptions of nationhood and nationalism compete for predominance within all European states. As Auer observes, the cultural 'core' which exists within every national identity provides crucial underpinning to the emergence of a stable democratic community.Yet this culturaldimensioncan alsofeed ethnocentricnationalism which seeks to prioritisethe needs of a particularnational community over those of others.In this respect,as Michael BilHig has previouslyobserved,both 'civic' and 'ethnic' conceptions of nationhood can foster intolerance towards outsiders. In recent times, Western political theorists such as Will Kymlicka have arguedfor the possibilityof a liberal nationalism capable of reconcilingthe universaldemands of liberalismwith particularisticattachmentsto a national culture. As Auer reminds us here, such thinking is far from alien to the territoriesof the former Eastern Bloc, where intellectualshave perhaps had particularcause to ponder the questionof how to reconcile the particularwith the universal. Indeed, even the much-maligned and misquoted Johann Gottfried Herder subordinated concern for one's particular nationality to those of a broader 'Humanitat'.In skilfullytracingthe complexitiesof nationalist discourse within his three countries of study, Auer provides a valuable contemporary complement to Aviel Roshwald's historical study (curiously absent from the bibliographyof this work)on Ethnic Nationalism andtheFall of Empires (London and New York, 2000). In the second general chapter of the book, Auer offerssome useful reflections on the minorityrightsdilemma i.e. 'how can political liberalismwith its focus on individualfreedom accommodate the...