Description
Book SynopsisJust a few years ago, Greece appeared to be a politically secure nation with a healthy economy. Today, Greece can be found at the center of the economic maelstrom in Europe. Beginning in late 2008, the Greek economy entered a nosedive that would transform it into the European country with the most serious and intractable fiscal problems. Both the deficit and the unemployment rate skyrocketed. Quickly thereafter, Greece edged toward a pre-revolutionary condition, as massive anti-austerity protests punctuated by violence and vandalism spread throughout Greek cities. Greece was certainly not the only country hit hard by the recession, but nevertheless the entire world turned its focus toward it for a simple reason: the possibility of a Greek exit from the European Monetary Union, and its potential to unravel the entire Union, with other weaker members heading for the exits as well. The fate of Greece is inextricably tied up with the global politics surrounding austerity as well. Is auster
Trade Review"Kalyvas' slim volume puts this story into perspective with remarkable clarity and brevity. If you read one general introduction to Greek politics, this should be it." -- Foreign Affairs
Table of ContentsIntroduction ; Chapter One: Modern Greece as a project ; Did Modern Greece spring from Ancient Greece? ; How did the Greek National movement begin? ; What were the social sources of Greek Nationalism? ; Who were the Nationalists? ; How did Greece secede from the Ottoman Empire?Who rebelled? ; How did a Greek state emerge out of the war? ; How did international politics impact on the war? ; What was the European reaction to the Modern Greek project? ; How was the new state built? ; Why was nation-building successful? ; What was the state of the economy in 19th century Greece? ; How did democracy come to Greece? ; How did the new democratic institutions operate? ; How did Greece become a national of small land-holders? ; Chapter Two: State Consolidation and National Expansion ; What was the fate of Trikoupis' modernization project? ; What was the Great Idea? ; Who were the unredeemed Greeks? ; What were the consequences of irredentist foreign policy? ; What was the Macedonian Conflict? ; How did Greece double its territory? ; What was the National Schism? ; What was the Anatolian Disaster? ; What was the impact of the Anatolian Disaster? ; How did the military become politicized? ; How popular was communism in Greece? ; Chapter Three: War, Occupation, and Civil War ; What were the causes of the Greek Civil War? ; How did the occupation morph into civil war? ; What explains the rise of the communists? ; Why did KKE's competitors in the resistance fail? ; What drove collaboration in Greece? ; How was the postwar fate of Greece sealed? ; How did Greece become the frontline of the Cold War? ; Why did the winners win and the losers lose? ; What is the legacy of the Civil War ; Chapter Four: The Greek Miracle and Its Aftermath ; How did Greece take off? ; What Greece a democracy? ; What caused the April 1967 coup? ; Why was the transition to democracy so smooth? ; What was Greek Socialism and what explains its success? ; What was the impact of EU membership? ; Is Greek politics clientelistic? ; Why are Greeks and Turks fighting? ; Chapter Four: The 2010 Crisis ; Was the adoption of the Euro a good idea for Greece? ; How did Greece end up with an explosive debt? ; What has been the effect of the austerity program and the IMF/ECB/EU bailout? ; Conclusion ; What are the broader lessons of the Greek story? ; What does the future hold for Greece?
