Rites of Spring: The Great War And The Birth Of The Modern Age (Paperback)

The book is an unusual look at the spirit(geist) of European civilization and World War I. It is unusual not just because of the ideas he proposes, in particular, that WWI marks a turning point in history where a new spirit displaced the old, but in the very way he writes. For it is not history in a narrow sense of people, dates, and activities, but rather social criticism or commentary on the meaning of the events, on the big movements of ideas. Like H. Spenser or A. Toynbee, M. Eksteins is concerned with meaning, with significance, with ideology; these big powerful currents that dwarf the mere mortals that think them. This kind of writing appeals to some people and really disappoints many others, i suppose it has a lot to do with if the author sees the same big picture as you do, or if you constantly fight his analysis while reading the book.

It is his belief that technology, the growth of population in cities, contribute to a changing spirit of the age(geist) that found in the destruction and death of WWI, a sympathetic note and a turning point. He starts with art and artists as embodied ideology that represented a nihilism, a challenge to the 19thC bourgeois values that had dominated European culture up until this point in time. This is the ballet and music that give the book its name, ballet as art in rebellion, music as jarring noise to force people out of their normal paths of thinking. This and the details of the contention form chapter one-"Paris". He moves from there to "Berlin", chapter two, an analysis of the geist of Germany, its newness as a coherent unified state, and the problems of modernisation. "In Flander's Field" is about the war itself, and why men fight, in particular, why did the British and German fight? What principles pushed them, what ideals motivated them, and how they responded to the conditions of total war in the trenches. Chapter four, "Rites of War", feels almost like a paraphases, an explanation of some of the details of the war. "Reason in Madness" is why do men keep fighting even in such atroctious conditions. This chapter and seven, "Journey to the Interior" i believe are the best in the book, and are readable by themselves, i would browse these two in order to decide to buy and read the whole book. Seven is about the changing psyche of those involved in the battles, what they thought as primarily seen in journals and poems they kept or sent home. It is the climax of the book, and is the chapter most anchored to details, to primary documents, so that M. Eksteins ideas are supported better here then elsewhere in the book. The book winds down with a chapter each, on the Lindberg flight across the Atlantic, the book "Alls Quiet on the Western Front" and the rise of Hitler.

The big question for me was why did men go into the trenches? continue to stay there for 4 years? and most mysterious go over the top to certain death? He handles this multiple part question in terms of what ideas motivated people and continued to sustain them over the years. I found this of particular interest.

I am afraid that the book will have only a small natural audience, read "Journey to the Interior" to see if you fall into this class of people that like their history with grand views and social criticism, i do and appreciate what turned out to be an interesting and challenging read. I was disappointed at part 3, which starts with "Night Dancer" the story of Lindberg, i think i would have rather read more supporting data and how things tied together during the war. Then have the aftermath of the war be another book. This is the primary reason i gave the book 4 start rather than 5, he builds up to chapter 7 then it really drops in quality and intensity as it moves to analysis of the world after the trenches. He is best when dealing with a strand of thought, starting from a journal note or a poem, through the meaning of this to the writer, then switching levels to see how this is indicative of a geist that was shared among many troops and the folks back home. He is weak were he talks in sweeping generalities and tries to encompass too much with too little supportive data, especially when the data is art, ballet or music.

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