Waubonsee Community College

The global age, Europe, 1950-2017, Ian Kershaw

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages 563-587) and index

platesmapsillustrations

index present

non fiction

The global age

bibliography

1097548018

Ian Kershaw

The Penguin history of Europe, IX

Europe, 1950-2017

The final chapter in the Penguin History of Europe series from the acclaimed scholar and author of To Hell and Back. After the overwhelming horrors of the first half of the twentieth century, described by Ian Kershaw in his previous book as being 'to Hell and back,' the years from 1950 to 2017 brought peace and relative prosperity to most of Europe. Enormous economic improvements transformed the continent. The catastrophic era of the world wars receded into an ever more distant past, though its long shadow continued to shape mentalities. Yet Europe was now a divided continent, living under the nuclear threat in a period intermittently fraught with anxiety. There were, by most definitions, striking successes: the Soviet bloc melted away, dictatorships vanished, and Germany was successfully reunited. But accelerating globalization brought new fragilities. The interlocking crises after 2008 were the clearest warnings to Europeans that there was no guarantee of peace and stability, and, even today, the continent threatens further fracturing. In this remarkable book, Ian Kershaw has created a grand panorama of the world we live in and where it came from. Drawing on examples from all across Europe, The Global Age is an endlessly fascinating portrait of the recent past and present, and a cautious look into our future

The tense divide -- The making of Western Europe -- The clamp -- Good times -- Culture after the catastrophe -- Challenges -- The turn -- Easterly wind of change -- Power of the people -- New beginnings -- Global exposure -- Crisis years