A Suburb of Europe: Nineteenth-century Polish Approaches to Western Civilization

Front Cover
Central European University Press, 1999 - History - 307 pages

In this lively and original book, the distinguished Polish historian Jerzy Jedlicki tells the story of a century-long Polish dispute over the merits and demerits of the Western model of liberal progress and industrial civilization.


As in several countries of Europe, also in Poland, intellectuals--conservatives, liberals, and (later) socialists--quarrelled about whether such a model would suit and benefit their nation, or whether it would spell the ruin of its distinctive cultural features.


This heated debate revolved around several pairs of opposing ideas: native cultures v. cosmopolitan civilization; natural v. artificial ways of economic development; Christian morals v. capitalist laissez-faire; traditional customs v. mobile society; romanticism v. scientism, and so on. It is these various aspects of the main issue which the author analyzes and links together here. He describes how difficult and painful the process of modernization was in a nation deprived of its political independence and cultural autonomy.

From inside the book

 

Contents

National Identity and Cosmopolitan Civilization
3
Natural or Artificial Development
51
The Gospel and Economy
103
Copyright

5 other sections not shown

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A Suburb of Europe: Nineteenth-century Polish Approaches to Western Civilization
Jerzy Jedlicki
Snippet view - 1999
A Suburb of Europe: Nineteenth-century Polish Approaches to Western Civilization
Jerzy Jedlicki
Snippet view - 1999

Common terms and phrases

agriculture Aleksander Wielopolski argued axiology became become capital capitalist century civilization civilizational Congress Kingdom conservative corvée culture defend democratic Duchy of Warsaw economic economists Enlightenment epoch Europe European fact factories faith feudal forces foreign freedom future Galicia gentry German Głos growth human Ibid idea ideal ideology individual industry intellectual intelligentsia interests investment Kraków Krzywicki labor land laws Leopold Kronenberg liberal Liberum veto Łódź Ludwik Krzywicki Lwów mankind means Mochnacki modern moral natural needs Niwa organic partition zone peasants philosophy Pisma Poland Poles Polish enlightened Polish Kingdom Polish socialists political positivists poverty Poznań principles production progress proletariat Prus Przegląd Tygodniowy reform regarded revolution romantic Russian Russian Empire Sismondi Skarbek Slavophiles social society spirit Supiński Surowiecki Świętochowski theory thought tion tradition universal values Warsaw wealth West Western whole Wilno workers Wrocław wrote young

References to this book

About the author (1999)

Jerzy Jedlicki is Professor of History at the Institute of History of the Polish Academy of Sciences, where he is the head of a group engaged in research into the history of the intelligentsia. He also teaches history at the Graduate School for Social Research in Warsaw. Professor Jedlicki lectured at several American Universities including Harvard University and the University of Michigan. He is fellow of the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington D.C.

Bibliographic information

TitleA Suburb of Europe: Nineteenth-century Polish Approaches to Western Civilization
AuthorJerzy Jedlicki
Editionabridged, illustrated
PublisherCentral European University Press, 1999
ISBN9639116270, 9789639116276
Length307 pages
Subjects ›  › 

History / Civilization
History / Europe / Eastern
History / Europe / General
History / Europe / Poland
History / Modern / 19th Century
History / Modern / General
Political Science / History & Theory
Political Science / Political Ideologies / Nationalism & Patriotism
Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural & Social
  
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