National Identity and Foreign Policy: Nationalism and Leadership in Poland, Russia and Ukraine (Cambridge Russian, Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies, Series Number 103)

This book argues that the foreign policy of any country is heavily influenced by national identity. This is especially the case in East-Central Europe where political institutions are weak, and social coherence remains subject to the vagaries of the concept of nationhood. Ilya Prizel's study examines the history and politics of Russia, Poland and Ukraine, and will be of interest to students of nationalism, as well as foreign policy and politics in East-Central Europe. This Book Is Based On The Premise That The Foreign Policy Of Any Country Is Heavily Influenced By A Society's Evolving Notions Of Itself. Prizel's Study Will Be Of Interest To Students Of Nationalism, Foreign Policy And Politics In East-central Europe. Introduction: Statement Of Arguments -- 1. National Identity And Foreign Policy: A Dialectical Relationship -- 2. Polish Identity 1795-1944: From Romanticism To Positivism To Ethnonationalism -- 3. Poland After World War Ii: Native Conservatism And The Return To Central Europe -- 4. Polish Foreign Policy In Perspective: A New Encounter With Positivism -- 5. Russia's National Identity And The Accursed Question: A Strong State And A Weak Society -- 6. Russian Identity And The Soviet Period -- 7. Russia's Foreign Policy Reconsidered -- 8. Ukraine: The Ambivalent Identity Of A Submerged Nation, 1654-1945 -- 9. Ukraine After World War Ii: Birth Pangs Of A Modern Identity -- 10. Foreign Policy As A Means Of Nation Building. Ilya Prizel. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Frontmatter Preface (page xi) Introduction: statement of arguments (page 1) 1 National identity and foreign policy: a dialectical relationship (page 12) 2 Polish identity 1795-1944: from romanticism to positivism to ethnonationalism (page 38) 3 Poland after World War II: native conservatism and the return to Central Europe (page 75) 4 Polish foreign policy in perspective: a new encounter with positivism (page 109) 5 Russia's national identity and the accursed question: a strong state and a weak society (page 153) 6 Russian identity and the Soviet period (page 180) 7 Russia's foreign policy reconsidered (page 239) 8 Ukraine: the ambivalent identity of a submerged nation, 1654-1945 (page 300) 9 Ukraine after World War II: birth pangs of a modern identity (page 339) 10 Foreign policy as a means of nation building (page 372) 11 Conclusion: national identify and politics in the age of the "Mass-Man" (page 404) Index (page 428) This book is based on the premise that the foreign policy of any country is heavily influenced by a society's evolving notions of itself. Applying his analysis to Russia, Poland, and Ukraine, the author argues that national identity is an ever-changing concept, influenced by internal and external events, and by the manipulation of a polity's collective memory. The interaction of the narrative of a society and its foreign policy is therefore paramount. This is especially the case in East-Central Europe, where political institutions are weak, and social coherence remains subject to the vagaries of the concept of nationhood. Ilya Prizel's study will be of interest to students of nationalism, as well as of foreign policy and politics in East-Central Europe.