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Review
| Arab Nationalism in the Twentieth Century: From Triumph to Despair, by Adeed Dawisha. Princeton, NY: Princeton University Press, 2003. 340 pages. $29.95, cloth.
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| Adeed Dawisha's new book probably could not have been published fifteen or twenty years ago. Arab nationalism, though defunct, still held the imagination of some senior intellectuals within the Arab world. Dawisha's book paints an unvarnished portrait of an ideology that was as much an artificial construct as any modern movement. His straightforward approach—political science without the jargon—makes the book particularly useful for undergraduate or even advanced high school courses. After sorting through some terminology, Dawisha's book essentially divides into four parts. Part one (chapter two) is a combination of pre-WWI history and a literature review. Dawisha walks the reader through the classic story of Arab nationalism (as told primarily by George Antonious), identifying strong intellectual roots for the movement as far back as the mid-19th century in Syria. He then proceeds to argue against Antonious, citing other authors as well, and submits his own arguments about the difficulty of separating Islamic renewal movements from Arab nationalism, In doing so, he identifies significant Muslims who could legitimately be called nationalists, even recognizing Sharif Husayn's "Great Arab Revolt" in WWI as a true nationalist movement. |
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Part II (chapter three) identifies Sati al-Husri as a seminal Arab intellectual who truly introduced nationalism to the Arab world. Dawisha recognizes the European provenance of the concept, points out two basic variants (British-French, indelibly tied to the construction of the modern state, and German, a romantic concept of organic and timeless community), and places al-Husri in the German camp. Dawisha then demonstrates the "fit" between German-style political romanticism and emerging Arab identity. Part III (chapters four through ten) tells the story of the rise and fall of Arab nationalism. Dawisha focuses on the "big three" players: Egypt, Syria, and Iraq. Particular emphasis is placed on the symbolism of Palestine in the 1940s, on Egyptian President's Gamal abd al-Nasser's transformation from Egyptian patriot to consummate Arab nationalist, and on the failed merger of Egypt and Syria into the United Arab Republic. He then discusses the downward slide of the movement (which he actually dates at the moment the UAR was created in 1958). |
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Dawisha paints a dramatic portrait of the struggle between old-style Arab monarchies (such as that in Iraq prior to the 1958 military coup) and the seemingly irrepressible power of Nasser. At the same time, he provides a detailed analysis of how Arab nationalism failed, examining its quick fall as Nasser and other Arab leaders retreated from action (as opposed to discourse) on nationalist principles despite popular support for political unity. Part IV (chapter 11) explains why. Dawisha notes several possible factors, including the inability of the movement to disassociate itself from Nasser, the ongoing and seemingly perpetual competition of Arab nationalism with sub-nationalist loyalties (ranging from regional to clan), the psychological defeat of the 1967 war with Israel, limitations to economic expansion, and the reemergence of radical Islam beginning in the 1970s. This emergence "robbed nationalism of whatever chance of recovery it might have entertained after 1967" (p 296). In the search for less proximate causes, Dawisha lays blame on the lack of democratic institutions that might have perpetuated the nationalist cause beyond the lives of charismatic leaders or other favorable political circumstances. |
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This book is quite useful for teaching purposes. Although attentive to an array of primary and secondary sources, Dawisha's writing style is uncluttered. Hence his arguments should prove readily accessible to undergraduates and advanced secondary students. The literature review in chapter two is very helpful in capturing the historical debate on Arab nationalism. Other sections provide useful narratives of Arab intellectual history, mostly in comparison to al-Husri. The book also has some excellent quotes from which instructors might glean a document-based question on Arab nationalism. For teachers building comparative units with other regions of the world, there are several possible connections between the Arab world (as presented by Dawisha) and sub-Saharan Africa in the 1960s, such as the resilience of colonial-era political boundaries and the rise of autocratic rulers. Naturally, the book is not perfect. Dawisha's coverage of the 1967 war with Israel is inadequate even for a work focusing on domestic Arab politics. In light of the author's heavy emphasis on the European origins of Arab nationalism, it also seems odd that he does not highlight the European provenance of the construct of monarchy used by several "old-style" Arab regimes such as Iraq. Nonetheless, Arab Nationalism in the Twentieth Century is a succinct and quite valuable tool for teachers and students of modern Middle East history. |
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| The Seven Hills School, Cincinnati, Ohio |
Frank P. Tipton |
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