Developement Of Europe Essay -- essays research papers

Development of Europe   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The notions of â€Å"modernity,† â€Å"modernization,† and â€Å"modernism† play an important role in better understanding the development of Europe. These three concepts can be applied to a range of transformations in the areas of politics, socio-economics, and culture respectively. The three concepts are connected, yet each has its own unique qualities that are useful in understanding the changes across Europe in this period. These ideas are crucial to the better comprehension of the creation of the Europe of today.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  To understand the significance of the terms, it is important to first understand the terms themselves. â€Å"Modernity† was a term used around the French Revolution as a term of abuse. However, in the later part of the nineteenth century and in the twentieth century it became associated more with improvement and advancement. â€Å"Modernization† refers to the processes political, economic, and social that made a society modern. An example of this would be industrialization. Finally, â€Å"modernism† is a reference to a high cultural movement and was used to relate to changing attitudes. It is basically a celebration of the notion of progress.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Modernity† during the French Revolution was used as a term of abuse. At this time, during the Reign of Terror in particular, France was moving toward a more republican form of government. During their attempt at the Republic of Virtue Catholicism was a focal point of attack. These attacks ended up fueling divisions that in the end proved to be fatal for the republican government. What some people saw as the future, others disliked and associated it with â€Å"modernity.† Hence, the concept of â€Å"modernity’s† use as an abusive phrase. However, at the close of the French Revolution, â€Å"modernity† took on a new use. In the nineteenth century and beyond, â€Å"modernity† became a term associated with good things.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Unlike â€Å"modernity,† â€Å"modernization† has always been a fairly neutral term. It has always described the processes that actually made the society modern. As mentioned before, a perfect example of this would be industrialization. The best place to see â€Å"modernization† is England during the Industrial Revolution. In England during the nineteenth century, industrialization began with the movement from agrar... ...form. The NEP substituted a fixed tax on production for requisitions of grain. This policy encouraged people to produce, sell, and make money. People did get rich, but many more stayed impoverished. This belied the Bolshevik credo of a classless utopia. Furthermore, it was basically only a compromise with capitalist methods. It also lead to opposition from within the party. The Worker Opposition protested Bolshevik usurpation of economic control. They pointed out that the NEP was an agrarian program and not a proletarian one.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Zero Hour is a term that came into being at the end of World War II. It originated in Germany and was used as a way of saying that the slate was wiped clean. The Germans that survived the war did not want to be associated with the Holocaust and a war the took millions of lives. Zero hour was their way of saying they wanted to start over. Eventually, however, zero hour became a term for all of Europe. After the destruction of World War II many Europeans and the nations wanted a new start. Not only were most of the major cities flattened, but the people themselves did not want to be associated with the death and fascism of the war.