التراث المغدور: اغتيال ماضي البوسنة

by Robert J. Donia, Johan V.A. Fine, أحمد محمود (Translator)

يتناول هذا الكتاب التقاليد التاريخيه الثريه فى البوسنه فى ضوء الصراع الذى اندلع هناك سنه 1992. ويوضح لنا المؤلفان أصول الجماعات العرقيه القوميه الرئيسيه فى التحولات الدينيه التى شهدتها العصور الوسطى والحقبه العثمانيه من تاريخ البوسنه التى كانت بمثابه مقدمه لتحول طوائفها الدينيه الأساسيه إلى قوميات القرن العشرين. وخلال ذلك يقدم المؤلفان دور كل من المسلمين والصرب والكروات فى تلك الأحداث التى أثَّرت على الشعوب اليوغسلافيه فى القرن العشرين، ثم بعد تفكيك يوغسلافيا فى أوائل التسعينيات.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

268 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Hossam Nabil · Rating 4 out of 5]

الكتاب صدر في 1994 يعني قبل انتهاء حرب البوسنة،فهو يتحدث عن تاريخ البوسنة الأول حتى تاريخ صدور الكتاب ويركز على ديموغرافيا البلقان بشكل عام والبوسنة بشكل خاص

[Erik · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm probably being a bit harsh on my grading here, but honestly I felt like the whole book was a written form of "click bait". The book does a terrific job of giving the reader a decent general history of the region going back hundreds of years, but what it totally fails to do is provide any quality arguments or ideas on today's situations as implied by the title. Who betrayed the traditions and why? For what purpose? Seriously, only the last 60 pages are dedicated to recent history, so you have 220 pages of describing the traditions and just 60 pages of modern history and analysis. That is like 20% of the book "on topic" and 80% background fluff. I feel betrayed.

Now I will not say that the book wasn't interesting as my knowledge of the region's history is modest compared to other areas of historical interest I have. I learned a lot about some of the past relationships between the Croats, Serbs, and Bosnians I had not read before. But to draw a conclusion that everything was great in the past and now some bad folks have stirred up nationalistic hatred out of thin air in recent years sounds naive and wishful thinking without hard evidence of some sort of conspiracy or plot to destabilize the region. I found there to be precious little evidence in this book.

Ethnic hatreds and rivalries can be suppressed when regions are conquered by overly powerful forces. I do not feel the author really gave this much credence and seemed to ignore the entire region had been under numerous conquerors over the centuries. Small ethnic communities have bigger fish to fry when they are being suppressed by invaders like the Turks for example. Or strong government militarism of Communist led nations. Totalitarian systems do wonderfully at stamping out idealistic ethnic individuals and prevent the rise of charismatic local leaders. This is a critical point I do not feel Mr. Donia covers sufficiently and it weakens his arguments significantly. I just don't think there is a lot of supporting evidence available, hence the reason for less than 20% of the book looking at the situation now (or post-Tito for that matter).

This is not a terrible book, but it either needs to be much longer providing more support for his opinions or it needs to pack a big punch in the few pages covering the main point. This book did neither, and left me feeling like a promise by the author was broken. You want me to believe that the ethnic violence in Bosnia today is a new thing born out of the hatred of a few leaders in recent times, and give only circumstantial evidence of the past to "prove" that the ethnic cultures at war now were actually friendly and peaceful. Prisoners in prison are also generally peaceful, but if you fail to mention the fact that they are behind bars, the argument loses credibility. It is highly probable that these ethnic divides have always existed and simply are now manifesting due to their release from suppressing regimes and kingdoms. To present a book saying otherwise but then failing to really back it up with tangible evidence earns this book 1 Star. I add another Star for the 200+ pages of background history that was interesting (but missed the mark on proving his points), and a very nice English reading bibliography.

I wish the hatred and violence would not exist in the region, and in fairness I must admit to having served in the military that tried to peacekeep in Bosnia. I saw things. The tradition of peace and acceptance the author tries to imply existed were nowhere to be seen. I cannot believe the people suddenly changed so much in just a few years without a deeply instilled level of animosity to cultures outside of their own. The nationalistic fervor arose from these hidden hatreds, in my opinion. The Balken wars preceding WW1 hinted at things to come, and we failed to listen.

[Ben Laussade · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is what it is. If you think you'd like to know about Bosnia and Hercegovina, this book is for you. When you're done, you'll know about it.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is what it is. If you think you'd like to know about Bosnia and Hercegovina, this book is for you. When you're done, you'll know about it.

[Mohamed]

للتحميل
http://goo.gl/sxR0cH

[Santa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bosnia and Hercegovina: A Tradition Betrayed offers a nuanced historical perspective on Bosnia's ethnic dynamics, emphasizing a tradition of pluralism and coexistence betrayed by political developments in the late 1980's and early 1990's. It poses a historical depth, highlights tolerance, and is written in authoritative manner.