In the Age of Revolutions, Fareed Zakaria trains a historical lens on the current world order, geopolitics and the social divide in the US to understand how past revolutions have influenced the present.
By Mukund Acharya
A time of uncertainty and unease
We live in a time of uncertainty, unrest, and unease. The instant spread of information, misinformation, and disinformation – enabled by technology and social media – constantly brings to our attention unsettling events worldwide that are not in our control. Behavior and attitudes are changing; civility, patience, understanding, and accommodation are in short supply. Discontent, distrust, deep divisions, polarization, blame, anger, resentment, and violence have escalated.
100 days to a highly consequential election
Here in the United States, a highly consequential presidential election is a hundred days away. Many consider it a referendum – a fundamental choice for our system of governance – either a participatory democracy favoring diversity, inclusion, and tolerance, or an authoritarian autocracy that will favor a chosen few and push out or marginalize the rest. Others dislike the current state of the country and are fearful of looming changes. They perceive an existential threat to their preferred way of life, beliefs, customs and traditions, and religious preferences, and blame it on the influence of ‘other countries’ and a ‘massive influx of outsiders’ who do not look or behave like they do, and who have a world view very different from their own. The outcome of this November’s election will have significant consequences for the future. Similar tensions and conflicts are playing out in many other parts of the world.
We view the world through the narrow lens of a few decades of our individual lived experiences, and react to events accordingly. Our decisions and actions are based on an assessment of the likely impact of these events on our lives, and those of our family and community. To properly understand the context and implications of these events; and more importantly, to judge where different possible outcomes could lead us – and how they might impact us, our communities, and society in the longer term, it is essential to broaden this lens to include, understand, and draw upon the lessons of history.
An insight into past revolutions
Against this backdrop, Fareed Zakaria’s latest book, Age of Revolutions provides a timely, thoughtful, and well-written commentary on a few select events – revolutions – from the past 500 years to help us understand the drivers of current-day change and unrest. It examines these events and how they played out, drawing parallels and differences with the present day.
Zakaria says that we are amid multiple revolutions, whether we realize it or not. His skillful narration and analysis of these past revolutions equip us with this necessary historical lens; to view where we are today. It provides the framework to extrapolate and examine possible future outcomes, their likelihood, and their implications. He poses three primary questions: what makes a period revolutionary? Are there predictable consequences of a revolutionary era? How does it all end?
Will learning about the history of relevant periods in the past help us better understand today’s political, economic, and social uncertainty, and the increasing polarization spreading worldwide? Are we witnessing firsthand a realignment of the world order? Are we unaware of future consequences?
Zakaria further asks: “did people in the United States of mid-1941 realize they were already in the midst of World War II?”
Amid four parallel revolutions
Zakaria posits that we are now in four revolutions that are “paradigm-shifting historical events”: globalization, technology, identity – “who are we as a people? as a nation?” – and geopolitics. His thesis can be summarized as follows: each of these revolutions has wrought change at such a rapid pace that people have not had the time to adjust. This change has been highly disruptive, impacting people differently. The result – a rise in inequality, economic, and social polarization – has driven anxiety, uncertainty, and fear in many, leading them to apportion blame on individuals, parts of the community, the government, and institutions. Societal divisions, unrest, and political polarization have followed.
A choice between starkly divergent paths
Changes wrought by “accelerating technology and economics, and rapidly shifting geopolitics” have been disruptive physically and psychologically, Zakaria argues, leading to a variety of backlashes. Today’s polarization and its outcome have led to a choice between two starkly different political paths. The first path is a liberal international order, which he describes as valuing individual rights and liberties at home, freedom of religion, open trade and market economics, and international cooperation within a rules-based order. (Liberal in this context is not to be confused with its use as a label for ‘left-wing’ politics in today’s left vs. right discussion).
The second path combines populism – with its accompanying anti-elite, anti-establishment sentiment, with a “yearning for a past golden age” and the identity politics of a group that wishes to preserve its ‘old’ ways and values, together with an authoritarian autocratic movement that promises a closed society that will protect their interests and keep out all others. Identity revolutions are powerful and consequential, says Zakaria; they stoke grievances and hostility towards others. People are overwhelmed, and fearful of a future with more disruption, dislocation, and the loss of the world they grew up in. This fundamental choice represents a push-pull dynamic between the past and the future.
A trip back in time
Zakaria takes us back in time to help us understand today, and examine where it could lead tomorrow. He begins with the First Liberal Revolution that began in the Netherlands in the middle of the 16th century. He then takes us through the Glorious Revolution that began in England a hundred years later. He describes why the French Revolution through the 18th and 19th centuries failed, while the Dutch and English succeeded. Rather than a bottom-up change that “grew naturally out of broad social, economic, and technological changes”,
Zakaria argues, “French leaders tried to impose modernity and enlightenment by top-down decree on a country that was largely unready for it. The extremism, polarization, and identity politics of the French revolution contrast strikingly with the moderation, pluralism, and liberalism of the Dutch and English revolutions.”
Zakaria goes on to describe the impact of the Industrial Revolution that took off in England in the middle of the 18th century – around the same time that the U.S. was fighting for independence from the English across the Atlantic, before turning to discuss the four present-day revolutions.
In his recounting of past revolutions, you’ll hear distinct echoes of the clamor, dissent, and disagreement of today and recognize current-day divisions and identity politics.
Age of Revolutions is thoughtful, well-researched and well-written. Quoting other historians and experts, and reaching into his own understanding of history, politics, and society, Zakaria provides a contextual framework for today’s political and social climate and equips the reader to better understand opposing worldviews. It is a timely and compelling read.
Read – Book review: ‘My Feudal Lord’ by Tehmina Durrani
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Mukund Acharya is a regular columnist for India Currents. He is also President and a co-founder of Sukham, an all-volunteer non-profit organization in the Bay Area that advocates for healthy aging within the South Asian community. Sukham provides curated information and resources on health and well-being, aging, and life’s transitions, including serious illness, palliative and hospice care, death, and bereavement. Contact the author at sukhaminfo@gmail.com.
Courtesy: India Currents (Posted on August 1, 2024)
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