Germany
A Nation in Its Time: Before, During, and After Nationalism, 1500-2000
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Germany
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Narrated by:
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Paul Woodson
About this listen
For nearly a century, historians have depicted Germany as a rabidly nationalist land, born in a sea of aggression. Not so, says Helmut Walser Smith, who, in this groundbreaking 500-year history, challenges traditional perceptions of Germany's conflicted past, revealing a nation far more thematically complicated than 20th-century historians have imagined.
Contrary to widespread perception, the people who first described Germany were pacific in temperament, and the pernicious ideology of German nationalism would only enter into the nation's history centuries later. Tracing the significant tension between the idea of the nation and the ideology of its nationalism, Smith shows a nation constantly reinventing itself and explains how radical nationalism ultimately turned Germany into a genocidal nation. Smith's aim, then, is nothing less than to redefine our understanding of Germany: Is it essentially a bellicose nation that murdered more than six million people? Or a pacific, 21st-century model of tolerant democracy?
Smith recreates the national euphoria that accompanied the beginning of World War I, followed by the existential despair caused by Germany's shattering defeat. This psychic devastation would simultaneously produce both the modernist glories of the Bauhaus and the meteoric rise of the Nazi party.
©2020 Helmut Walser Smith (P)2021 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about Germany
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jiri
- 03-01-25
Useful book!
During my research about Holy Roman Empire, I discovered this book. It’s brilliantly written with many information over 500 years crammed into a single book. Which is not easy. Everyone should listen to this and get own opinion.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- T. J. Gluckman
- 06-01-25
Excellent! Right balance of analysis & narrative
As sb who lived in Germany for 20+ years, this book told me a lot I had no idea of, and filled in many areas I half knew about. It's not a book with much humour but there isn't much to laugh about.
It looks at the history of the geographical area now known as Germany while illuminating the gradual merging of the many principalities, dukedoms etc. that made up that area until far into the 19th Century. Drawing on much thorough analysis, IMO (in my opinion) it finds the right balance between depth and movement while having plenty of life i.e. it is not a book of dry theory. I recommend it .
The reading is well done by a sb clearly bilingual in English and German. I mention that bc IMO only bilingual readers should handle books where there are plenty of words in a that foreign language. It's not pleasing to listen to those readers who mangle foreign words.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Janine Busbridge
- 05-02-24
Chronicle of a Nation
A brilliant history of nationhood and the dark places to which nationalism can lead. History at its finest!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mr. Andrew Dennis
- 28-01-24
Brilliant sweeping study
Brilliantly narrated. The story of what actually makes up Germany is fascinating and complex. How history led to nationhood and thence to nationalism is at the core of this work. It is engaging, complicated and sometimes surprising.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Muhannad Hariri
- 25-09-23
Superb
Endlessly fascinating and the narration is excellent; the tracks, however don’t always match up with the chapters, which is a bit annoying.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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- Caterina Francu
- 10-05-23
The book need huge updates
I found it difficult to listen to so many misleading facts what mostly borrowed from Soviet Union propaganda. Seems like the author didn’t have access to modern sources on information or maybe couldn’t be bothered.
Firstly it’s soviet union was an ally with nazi Germany and was happy to grab as many territories as possible itself, but this subject is not mentioned in the book for some reason, the author straight forward mentions that russia ( not soviet union) is the biggest victim, although Soviet Union consisted from so many republics ( Ukraine and Belarus territories were 100% occupied buy nazi Germany with heavy consequences for both countries )Weird? I think so. But the biggest manipulation is following afterwards. And it’s when Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia and other Eastern European countries are blamed for their cooperation with nazi Germany. Little bit of background, all Eastern European countries considered both Soviet Union and nazi Germany occupants and the perspective for the cooperation is just russian propaganda. I do not recommend this book at all!
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4 people found this helpful