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TimothySnyder
between.”Theideaoftwindangers(oropportunities)arrivingfromeastand
westemergesonlywiththepartitionsofthelate18thcentury.
Thisgeo-psychologicalsenseofidentity,whenseenashistoricallycontingent
ratherthandeterministicallyfatal,helpstoenlightenanumberofargumentsin
theessaysthatfollow.Whentheworldisconceivedasamatterofachoicebe-
tweeneastandwest,thenitisalwayspossibletobecomedisillusionedwiththe
westandchoosetheRussianeast(or,inthesecondhalfofthe20thcentury,to
dotheopposite).Inthe19thcentury,atatimewhenmostofhistoricalPoland
wasunderRussianrule,thechoiceofRussiaagainstthewestwasadevelopment
rathermorecommonthanwemightthink,asanumberofchaptersillustrate.
Ifthedivisionbetweeneastandwestisitselfahistoricalartifact,itwillatsome
pointloseitssalience.Asseveralotherchapterssuggestorexplicitlyargue,it
couldmakesensetoreturnPolishhistorytoanaxisofnorthandsouthlinthe
21stcentury,aglobalratherthanaEuropeannorthandsouth.
ŁukaszMikołajewski’spresentationofAleksanderWielopolskiisastraight-
forwardexampleofthelogicalpossibilitiesoftheeast-westdualism,withjust
ahintofglobalhistoryinthebackdrop.Wielopolski,thoughrecalledasthe
mainadvocateofanagreementwithRussianimperialpowerintheearly1860s,
wasnotsodifferentfrommanyotherPolishnoblemenofhisgenerationinhis
initialideas.Hewasanadvocateoftheuprisingof1830-1831andatthetime
wroteverycriticallyoftheRussianEmpire.ItwastheslaughterofPolishgentry
inGaliciain1846thatturnedhimagainstthewest:theHabsburgmonarchy,in
permittingorplanningsuchacrime,haddemonstrateditshypocrisyasaCath-
olicandaEuropeanpower.Inthisanalysisloyaltytoestate,tofellowszlachta,
orthenobility,leadstostrategicconclusions.RussiashouldpunishAustriaand
PolesshouldserveRussiaasloyalpartnersandhelpspreadanimprovedform
ofSlavicandChristianculturearoundtheworld.
Wielopolski’sideasaboutthefutureofRussian-Polishpartnershipwere
quitewide-ranging,buttheydidnotincludethemodernelementofanideologi-
calconceptionoftimeorprogress.ThedefinitionofthePolishnationhadbeen
settledltheszlachtaltheonlyquestionwasitsorientation.Thisdistinguished
WielopolskifromRomanDmowski,whoinalaterperiodwasworkingwithin
aworldofideasinwhichsocialchangewasseentobenaturalandinevitable.
ForDmowski,arguesGrzegorzKrzywiec,theworldwassocialDarwinian,and
theweakweretoperishandthestrongweretothrive.Inthisapparentlydeter-
ministicandscientisticaccounttherewasaplacefortheintellectual.Powerful
individualswereneededtoinstructthePolishnationandindeedtocarryout
aunationalizationofthemasses,”sothatPolandcouldstruggleagainstothers
atfullstrength.Dmowski’santi-Semitism,inKrzywiec’saccount,isconsistent
throughout;itisdifficult,however,toseparateconvictionsfromtactics.Did
DmowskithinkthathatredoftheJewswasthebestwaytonationalizethe
masses?OrwasDmowskiactuallyconvinced(aswasHitler)thatJewsreally
werethesourceofallideasthatledpeopleawayfromthenaturalstruggle?In
