Since 1997, FORUM is an integral part of the journal landscape of European Studies. In addition to facts of contemporary history, it offers deep insights into the history of ideas, reflects current discussions, and provides reviews of books on Central and Eastern European history. Especially on the history of ideas and contemporary history it offers more than ›just‹ history—e.g. interdisciplinary discussions by political scientists, literary, legal, and economic scholars and philosophers. FORUM sees itself as a bridge between East and West. Through the translation and publication of documents and contributions from Russian, Polish, and Czech researchers it offers the Western reader insight into the scientific discourse within Eastern Europe. On this issue: The ‘short’ 20th century is one of the best-documented eras in history. Nevertheless it puzzles us with more mysteries than many periods of antiquity or the middle ages from which we only have sparse relics left that need to be reconstructed with painstaking effort. One of the biggest mysteries in this context is the question about the causes for the break in civilization in the first half of that century. Then, in Germany as well as in Russia, regimes came to power invoking the implementation of utopias which had been developed during the ‘long’ 19th century and which had been considered unrealizable so far. Now it turned out even the most radical utopian draft could be put into place. This development, intertwined with an extraordinarily deep crisis of European democracy, did not happen overnight. It had been looming for a long time. There had even been several admonishers heralding the upcoming crisis—trailing away without being noticed. Volume 19 Issue 1 of FORUM recognizes some of these unheard prophets and scrutinizes their writings.
About the author
Andreas Umland, M.Phil. (Oxford), Dr.Phil. (FU Berlin), Ph.D. (Cambridge), Research Fellow at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs in Stockholm, Senior Expert at the Ukrainian Institute for the Future in Kyiv, and Associate Professor at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
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