Arab Nationalism in the Twentieth Century: From Triumph to Despair - Softcover

Dawisha, Adeed

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9780691122724: Arab Nationalism in the Twentieth Century: From Triumph to Despair

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0691122725 ISBN 13: 9780691122724

Publisher: Princeton University Press, 2005

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Like a great dynasty that falls to ruin and is eventually remembered more for its faults than its feats, Arab nationalism is remembered mostly for its humiliating rout in the 1967 Six Day War, for inter-Arab divisions, and for words and actions distinguished by their meagerness. But people tend to forget the majesty that Arab nationalism once was. In this elegantly narrated and richly documented book, Adeed Dawisha brings this majesty to life through a sweeping historical account of its dramatic rise and fall.

Dawisha argues that Arab nationalism--which, he says, was inspired by nineteenth-century German Romantic nationalism--really took root after World War I and not in the nineteenth century, as many believe, and that it blossomed only in the 1950s and 1960s under the charismatic leadership of Egypt's Gamal 'Abd al-Nasir. He traces the ideology's passage from the collapse of the Ottoman Empire through its triumphant ascendancy in the late 1950s with the unity of Egypt and Syria and with the nationalist revolution of Iraq, to the mortal blow it received in the 1967 Arab defeat by Israel, and its eventual eclipse. Dawisha criticizes the common failure to distinguish between the broader, cultural phenomenon of "Arabism" and the political, secular desire for a united Arab state that defined Arab nationalism. In recent decades competitive ideologies--not least, Islamic militancy--have inexorably supplanted the latter, he contends.

Dawisha, who grew up in Iraq during the heyday of Arab nationalism, infuses his work with rare personal insight and extraordinary historical breadth. In addition to Western sources, he draws on an unprecedented wealth of Arab political memoirs and studies to tell the fascinating story of one of the most colorful and significant periods of the contemporary Arab world. In doing so, he also gives us the means to more fully understand trends in the region today.

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From the Back Cover:

"Adeed Dawisha's analysis of the rise and fall of Arab nationalism in the twentieth century exhibits clarity of exposition, thoroughness, and objectivity. The narrative is exceptional. Dawisha complements his own splendid credentials with excellent use of a large volume of memoir material from Arab leaders. There is no book that does as good a job."--William Quandt, University of Virginia

"Why does the world need this eminently readable book? Because academe is awash with speculation about the emergence of a 'new Arabism.' Dawisha's point is that anyone who lived through Arabism's heyday knows how disastrous it was, and that the new Arabist nostalgia ignores history. His treatment of the ill-fated United Arab Republic is a masterful account; the story of the decline is told with verve, in fluid and engaging prose."--Martin Kramer, Tel Aviv University

About the Author:

Adeed Dawisha is Professor of Political Science at Miami University, Ohio. He is the author of Egypt in the Arab World and Syria and the Lebanese Crisis (both Macmillan), and The Arab Radicals, and is the editor of several books including Islam in Foreign Policy.

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