Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian Framework
This paper critically scrutinizes Timothy Snyder’s book The Road to Unfreedom. Russia, Europe, America (The Bodley Head, Vintage, London 2018). It claims that the main reason for his failure to present a convincing account of the current neo-nationalist and authoritarian turn and outline an adequat...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Institute of International Relations Prague
2020-06-01
|
| Series: | Czech Journal of International Relations |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://mv.iir.cz/article/view/1702/1529 |
| _version_ | 1797969624670666752 |
|---|---|
| author | Barša, Pavel |
| author_facet | Barša, Pavel |
| author_sort | Barša, Pavel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper critically scrutinizes Timothy Snyder’s book The Road to Unfreedom. Russia, Europe, America (The Bodley Head, Vintage, London 2018). It claims that the main reason for his failure to present a convincing account of the current neo-nationalist and authoritarian turn and outline an adequate intellectual and political response to it is his clinging to an anti-totalitarian framework which he had applied to Eastern Europe in some of his previous historical works (Snyder 2003, 2010). The framework reduces three main ideological alternatives that fought with each other in the last century into two: liberalism was supposedly challenged by totalitarianism. Since Snyder reduces the present crisis to the threat of the return of totalitarianism, he sees an appropriate response in the revival of the human and civic solidarity associated with the anti-totalitarian movements of the last century. The essay outlines an alternative view: it links the present crisis of democracy to the ravaging effects of neo-liberal globalization and, accordingly, suggests combining anti-authoritarianism with anti-capitalism – or human and civic solidarity with social solidarity. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T03:04:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ab345b9a6096476bbdcf0f974c625fc7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0323-1844 2570-9429 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T03:04:11Z |
| publishDate | 2020-06-01 |
| publisher | Institute of International Relations Prague |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Czech Journal of International Relations |
| spelling | doaj.art-ab345b9a6096476bbdcf0f974c625fc72023-01-02T13:27:41ZengInstitute of International Relations PragueCzech Journal of International Relations0323-18442570-94292020-06-015524764Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian FrameworkBarša, Pavel0authorThis paper critically scrutinizes Timothy Snyder’s book The Road to Unfreedom. Russia, Europe, America (The Bodley Head, Vintage, London 2018). It claims that the main reason for his failure to present a convincing account of the current neo-nationalist and authoritarian turn and outline an adequate intellectual and political response to it is his clinging to an anti-totalitarian framework which he had applied to Eastern Europe in some of his previous historical works (Snyder 2003, 2010). The framework reduces three main ideological alternatives that fought with each other in the last century into two: liberalism was supposedly challenged by totalitarianism. Since Snyder reduces the present crisis to the threat of the return of totalitarianism, he sees an appropriate response in the revival of the human and civic solidarity associated with the anti-totalitarian movements of the last century. The essay outlines an alternative view: it links the present crisis of democracy to the ravaging effects of neo-liberal globalization and, accordingly, suggests combining anti-authoritarianism with anti-capitalism – or human and civic solidarity with social solidarity.https://mv.iir.cz/article/view/1702/1529totalitarian paradigmfalse dichotomiesneoliberal globalizationthe new and old social movementscrisis of democracy |
| spellingShingle | Barša, Pavel Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian Framework Czech Journal of International Relations totalitarian paradigm false dichotomies neoliberal globalization the new and old social movements crisis of democracy |
| title | Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian Framework |
| title_full | Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian Framework |
| title_fullStr | Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian Framework |
| title_full_unstemmed | Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian Framework |
| title_short | Trapped in False Antitheses: Timothy Snyder’s Analyses of the Global Authoritarian Turn Are Crippled by His Anti-totalitarian Framework |
| title_sort | trapped in false antitheses timothy snyder s analyses of the global authoritarian turn are crippled by his anti totalitarian framework |
| topic | totalitarian paradigm false dichotomies neoliberal globalization the new and old social movements crisis of democracy |
| url | https://mv.iir.cz/article/view/1702/1529 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT barsapavel trappedinfalseantithesestimothysnydersanalysesoftheglobalauthoritarianturnarecrippledbyhisantitotalitarianframework |