Books

Defensive Nationalism: Explaining the Rise of Populism and Fascism in the 21st Century

https://academic.oup.com/book/45873

With the 21st century surge of populism, a debate has emerged over the relationship between nationalism and populism. Some scholars maintain these two phenomena are distinct and should be analytically differentiated; others hold the difference between the two is primarily an artifact of how the scholarship has evolved around each. To bridge these positions, this paper argues that by reorganizing our typologies of nationalism, we can better account for why populism seems to have become fused with nationalism. To do so, it introduces a new typology that distinguishes among state-creating, state-consolidating and state-defensive nationalisms. Applying this new typology, the case made is that we are experiencing a convergence of populism and nationalism today because we are currently in an era of defensive nationalism.

Reviews

“In a surprising twist, Rabinowitz explains the rise of populism and fascism as paradoxically linked to the greatest scientific advances of our age. Using Karl Polanyi’s concept of the ‘double movement’ and Joseph Schumpeter’s theory of innovation, the book compares anti-globalization movements of today with those that arose in the late 19th century. The comparison reveals how economic, social and political precarities created by modern technological revolutions draw people to anti-liberal, ‘defensive nationalist’ movements on both the left and the right. At a time when democracy is endangered by such inward-looking nationalism, Rabinowitz’ unique synthesis of theory and history offers a much-needed analysis of the nature of the threats facing us today.”
— Ronald Grigor Suny, William H. Sewell, Jr. Distinguished University Professor of History and Professor of Political Science, The University of Michigan, and Emeritus Professor, The University of Chicago

“B. S. Rabinowitz tackles one of the most pressing questions of our time in a refreshingly audacious manner. What has brought such potent threats to democracy in some of the world’s most technologically advanced nations? To unravel this puzzle, she goes back more than 150 years and extracts fresh insights from two very different theorists, Karl Polanyi and Joseph Schumpeter. She finds that in the late 20th Century, as in the late 19th Century, technological revolutions fueled globalization that ultimately produced a dangerous ‘defensive’ nationalism.”
— Steven K. Vogel, Professor of Political Science and Political Economy, University of California, Berkeley


“This compelling and highly original book synthesizes the views of two of the twentieth century’s leading economic sociologists, Karl Polanyi and Joseph Schumpeter, to explain the global resurgence of populism over the last decade. Understanding the historical shift towards economic liberalism as a function of technological progress, Rabinowitz highlights some of the central dynamics driving contemporary populist status anxiety, namely, the relative dislocation and disarticulation of established national, class, and ethnic hierarchies attendant to globalization. Defensive Nationalism is sure to be studied and to inspire fresh insights for years to come.”
— Zak Cope, co-editor of The Oxford Handbook of Economic Imperialism

Coups, Rivals, and the Modern State: Why Rural Coalitions Matter in Sub-Saharan Africa

https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/coups-rivals-and-the-modern-state/C71A619B14BD24DB97930F96BB7E8C41

State development in Africa is risky, even life-threatening. Heads of state must weigh the advantage of promoting political and economic development against the risk of fortifying dangerous political rivals. This book takes a novel approach to the study of neopatrimonial rule by placing security concerns at the center of state-building. Using quantitative evidence from 44 African countries and in-depth case studies of Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire, Rabinowitz demonstrates that the insecurities of the African state make strategically aligning with rural leaders critical to political success. Leaders who cultivate the goodwill of the countryside are better able to endure sporadic urban unrest, subdue political challengers, minimize ethnic and regional discord, and prevent a military uprising. Such regimes are more likely to build infrastructure needed for economic and political development. In so doing, Rabinowitz upends the long-held assumption that African leaders must cater to urban constituents to secure their rule.

Reviews

‘Through extensive research and perspicacious theorizing, Beth S. Rabinowitz has developed an innovative and compelling argument about the significance of a ‘rural political strategy’ for statebuilding in Africa. Rulers who build coalitions in the countryside are less prone to coups and more likely to develop their economies than leaders who focus on urban areas and consolidating power. Building on a deep tradition in the study of African politics, Rabinowitz breaks new ground in the study of urban-rural dynamics by demonstrating empirically how a rural political strategy contributes to stability. Her book is a key contribution for those who wish to understand the structural foundations of politics in Africa.’
–Scott Straus – University of Wisconsin, Madison

‘Beth S. Rabinowitz brings territorial politics back into the study of postcolonial African states. This valuable study is an important counterweight to conventional stories of ‘urban bias’ in African politics, and a historical corrective to work that takes 1990s multipartism as the ‘beginning of politics’. Rabinowitz’s argument that strong agricultural policies stabilized some of the continent’s most successful regimes is developed in a structured comparison of Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, and then extended across a set of 135 governments (in 44 countries) in postcolonial Africa. A new and important argument.’
–Catherine Boone – London School of Economics and Political Science

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