Why Would Anyone Want to Appease Hitler?

Why does it seem as though the Middle East is plagued by conflict? Why does democracy there feel fragile? Historian David Fromkin asked himself those questions and pored through secret documents, bureaucrats’ letters, and politicians’ journals to uncover why: The current state of the Middle East is largely due to decisions Europe made during and after World War I.

Before this war, countries like Israel, Jordan, and Syria didn’t exist—they were all part of the Ottoman Empire. Following World War I, Europe dismantled the Ottoman Empire, created new countries and borders, and chose new leaders, remaking it into a territory useful to Europe’s aims. However, these decisions created dilemmas the Middle East still grapples with.

This guide organizes Fromkin’s findings from his book A Peace to End All Peace (1989) into three stages: before, during, and after World War I. Within each stage, we explore the key decisions that shaped the modern Middle East. We also provide additional historical context and alternative viewpoints on these historical events.

Can socialist policies achieve the common good they promise? Or are they a slippery slope toward authoritarianism and fascism? In The Road to Serfdom (1944), economist Friedrich Hayek argues that socialism—centralized government control over the economy—strips away personal liberties, often leading to totalitarianism. He links the rise of socialism in early 20th-century Germany to the development of Nazism, and he warns about similar trends emerging in postwar England and the US.

In this guide, we explore Hayek's explanations of how socialism overtook liberalism in Western Europe, why socialism threatens democracy and peace, and how to avoid its dangers. We also provide historical context for Hayek’s arguments, real-world examples supporting and challenging his views, and contrasting opinions from other experts.

In The Silk Roads, historian Peter Frankopan identifies Central and Western Asia as the crossroads of human civilization, the birthplace of the world’s major religions, the battleground where the great empires of history rose and fell, and the garden from which today’s global economy first sprouted. He argues that understanding the East is crucial to our understanding of the world—particularly for Westerners who have lost this global perspective.

In ancient times, trade routes known as the Silk Roads first brought European merchants to the luxury markets of the East, enabling the flow of both material goods and ideas from East to West. According to Frankopan, the Silk Roads have always been history’s crucial connection point, spreading not just luxury goods like silk and spices, but also technology, religion, languages, cultures, ideologies, and even conflicts and diseases. In this guide, we explore Frankopan’s history of the Silk Roads, while also incorporating insights and feedback from other scholars to supplement his analysis.

Why does it seem as though the Middle East is plagued by conflict? Why does democracy there feel fragile? Historian David Fromkin asked himself those questions and pored through secret documents, bureaucrats’ letters, and politicians’ journals to uncover why: The current state of the Middle East is largely due to decisions Europe made during and after World War I.

Before this war, countries like Israel, Jordan, and Syria didn’t exist—they were all part of the Ottoman Empire. Following World War I, Europe dismantled the Ottoman Empire, created new countries and borders, and chose new leaders, remaking it into a territory useful to Europe’s aims. However, these decisions created dilemmas the Middle East still grapples with.

This guide organizes Fromkin’s findings from his book A Peace to End All Peace (1989) into three stages: before, during, and after World War I. Within each stage, we explore the key decisions that shaped the modern Middle East. We also provide additional historical context and alternative viewpoints on these historical events.

In The Silk Roads, historian Peter Frankopan identifies Central and Western Asia as the crossroads of human civilization, the birthplace of the world’s major religions, the battleground where the great empires of history rose and fell, and the garden from which today’s global economy first sprouted. He argues that understanding the East is crucial to our understanding of the world—particularly for Westerners who have lost this global perspective.

In ancient times, trade routes known as the Silk Roads first brought European merchants to the luxury markets of the East, enabling the flow of both material goods and ideas from East to West. According to Frankopan, the Silk Roads have always been history’s crucial connection point, spreading not just luxury goods like silk and spices, but also technology, religion, languages, cultures, ideologies, and even conflicts and diseases. In this guide, we explore Frankopan’s history of the Silk Roads, while also incorporating insights and feedback from other scholars to supplement his analysis.

In The Silk Roads, historian Peter Frankopan identifies Central and Western Asia as the crossroads of human civilization, the birthplace of the world’s major religions, the battleground where the great empires of history rose and fell, and the garden from which today’s global economy first sprouted. He argues that understanding the East is crucial to our understanding of the world—particularly for Westerners who have lost this global perspective.

In ancient times, trade routes known as the Silk Roads first brought European merchants to the luxury markets of the East, enabling the flow of both material goods and ideas from East to West. According to Frankopan, the Silk Roads have always been history’s crucial connection point, spreading not just luxury goods like silk and spices, but also technology, religion, languages, cultures, ideologies, and even conflicts and diseases. In this guide, we explore Frankopan’s history of the Silk Roads, while also incorporating insights and feedback from other scholars to supplement his analysis.

The Diary of a Young Girl is one of the most acclaimed works of the 20th century. Written by Anne Frank from 1942 to 1944, the diary reveals the humanity of those who suffered at the hands of the Nazis during their occupation of the Netherlands. Anne wrote about her experiences with anger, love, puberty, and fear as she and her family hid from an occupying force that wished to see her and her Jewish counterparts dead. Tight quarters, limited food, and the inability to go outside took an emotional toll on Anne and her fellow residents. This led to tensions that reflected the raging war taking place outside of their hiding place.

Conventional accounts of American history tend to focus on the people at the top—presidents, generals, CEOs, and other influential figures and their struggles, ambitions, hopes, and dreams. But what about average people? The ones who had to live with the consequences of elite decisions, and who often struggled in obscurity? In A People’s History of the United States, historian Howard Zinn aims to tell their story, providing a bottom-up view of American history focusing on Indigenous people, Black Americans, women, laborers, and activists.

Our guide outlines Zinn’s interpretation of significant events, themes, and historical trends in American history. Through our commentary, we’ll provide alternative opinions on the motivations behind and consequences of historical events. We’ll also further explain Zinn’s approach to history and provide additional context for his arguments as well as his perspective on events that happened after the book’s publication.

Why does it seem as though the Middle East is plagued by conflict? Why does democracy there feel fragile? Historian David Fromkin asked himself those questions and pored through secret documents, bureaucrats’ letters, and politicians’ journals to uncover why: The current state of the Middle East is largely due to decisions Europe made during and after World War I.

Before this war, countries like Israel, Jordan, and Syria didn’t exist—they were all part of the Ottoman Empire. Following World War I, Europe dismantled the Ottoman Empire, created new countries and borders, and chose new leaders, remaking it into a territory useful to Europe’s aims. However, these decisions created dilemmas the Middle East still grapples with.

This guide organizes Fromkin’s findings from his book A Peace to End All Peace (1989) into three stages: before, during, and after World War I. Within each stage, we explore the key decisions that shaped the modern Middle East. We also provide additional historical context and alternative viewpoints on these historical events.

Conventional accounts of American history tend to focus on the people at the top—presidents, generals, CEOs, and other influential figures and their struggles, ambitions, hopes, and dreams. But what about average people? The ones who had to live with the consequences of elite decisions, and who often struggled in obscurity? In A People’s History of the United States, historian Howard Zinn aims to tell their story, providing a bottom-up view of American history focusing on Indigenous people, Black Americans, women, laborers, and activists.

Our guide outlines Zinn’s interpretation of significant events, themes, and historical trends in American history. Through our commentary, we’ll provide alternative opinions on the motivations behind and consequences of historical events. We’ll also further explain Zinn’s approach to history and provide additional context for his arguments as well as his perspective on events that happened after the book’s publication.

Why does it seem as though the Middle East is plagued by conflict? Why does democracy there feel fragile? Historian David Fromkin asked himself those questions and pored through secret documents, bureaucrats’ letters, and politicians’ journals to uncover why: The current state of the Middle East is largely due to decisions Europe made during and after World War I.

Before this war, countries like Israel, Jordan, and Syria didn’t exist—they were all part of the Ottoman Empire. Following World War I, Europe dismantled the Ottoman Empire, created new countries and borders, and chose new leaders, remaking it into a territory useful to Europe’s aims. However, these decisions created dilemmas the Middle East still grapples with.

This guide organizes Fromkin’s findings from his book A Peace to End All Peace (1989) into three stages: before, during, and after World War I. Within each stage, we explore the key decisions that shaped the modern Middle East. We also provide additional historical context and alternative viewpoints on these historical events.

In The Silk Roads, historian Peter Frankopan identifies Central and Western Asia as the crossroads of human civilization, the birthplace of the world’s major religions, the battleground where the great empires of history rose and fell, and the garden from which today’s global economy first sprouted. He argues that understanding the East is crucial to our understanding of the world—particularly for Westerners who have lost this global perspective.

In ancient times, trade routes known as the Silk Roads first brought European merchants to the luxury markets of the East, enabling the flow of both material goods and ideas from East to West. According to Frankopan, the Silk Roads have always been history’s crucial connection point, spreading not just luxury goods like silk and spices, but also technology, religion, languages, cultures, ideologies, and even conflicts and diseases. In this guide, we explore Frankopan’s history of the Silk Roads, while also incorporating insights and feedback from other scholars to supplement his analysis.

The Diary of a Young Girl is one of the most acclaimed works of the 20th century. Written by Anne Frank from 1942 to 1944, the diary reveals the humanity of those who suffered at the hands of the Nazis during their occupation of the Netherlands. Anne wrote about her experiences with anger, love, puberty, and fear as she and her family hid from an occupying force that wished to see her and her Jewish counterparts dead. Tight quarters, limited food, and the inability to go outside took an emotional toll on Anne and her fellow residents. This led to tensions that reflected the raging war taking place outside of their hiding place.