首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Political changes in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union have reduced the threat of direct confrontation between two alli
Political changes in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union have reduced the threat of direct confrontation between two alli
admin
2013-11-29
49
问题
Political changes in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union have reduced the threat of direct confrontation between two alliances led by superpowers. But a critical consequence of reduced tensions between superpowers is the increased likelihood of unrest in places where the boundaries of states do not match those of nationalities.
Few Germans mourned the extinction of East Germany in 1990. Reunification put an end to many hardships for East Germans, such as the forced separation of families, limitations on civil rights, and harsh economic conditions.
On the surface, a unified Germany is consistent with the nation-state principle that has governed the organization of the earth’s surface this century. The arbitrary division of Germany into the Democratic and Federal republics resulted from the German defeat in World War II and the cold war that soon followed. Unification of Germany brought together two groups of people who both spoke German and referred to their country as "Germany."
But Germany is not an especially good example of a nation-state. A state known as Germany was not created until 1871. Before that time, the map of central Europe was a patchwork of small states, more than 300 during the seventeenth century, for example. Under Frederick the Great, the previously obscure state of Prussia was able to control a continuous stretch of territory abutting the Baltic Sea from Memel on the east to beyond the Elbe River on the west. Other consolidations reduced the number of states in the area to approximately two dozen by 1815.
in 1871, Prussia’s Prime Minister Otto von Bismarck was instrumental in forcing most of the remaining states in the area to join a Prussian-dominated German Empire, which extended west beyond the Rhine River. Bismarck failed to consolidate all German speakers into the empire; Austria, Switzerland, and Bohemia were excluded. The German Empire lasted less than fifty years.
After it lost World War I, Germany lost much of its territory. While the boundaries of southern European states were fixed to conform when possible to those of nationalities, Germany’s new boundaries were arbitrary. Germany became a fragmented state, with East Prussia separated from the rest of the country by the Danzig Corridor, created to give Poland a port on the Baltic Sea. German takeovers of Austria, Poland, and portions of Czechoslovakia during the 1930s were justified as attempts to reconstruct a true German nation-state.
After Germany’s defeat in World War II, boundaries were again shifted. Germany lost its eastern territory to Poland, which in turn gave up its eastern territory to the former Soviet Union. In the process, millions of Germans- as well as other nationalities — were forced to give up their property. Germany has been pressured by other states to accept the relocated boundary with Poland — along the Oder and Neisse rivers — but some Germans, especially those forced to move in 1945, resent the concession.
Germany’s western boundary has been no more stable. France regards the Rhine River as the proper boundary with Germany, but Prussia and more recently Germany have considered the Rhine to be entirely German. The area west of the Rhine, known as Alsace and Lorraine, has passed back and forth between French and German control, depending on who won the latest war. By living on the frontier between two cultures, Alsace (to a greater extent than Lorraine) reflects a mix of French and German language and social customs. Because France was on the winning side in World War II, it now controls the area.
Germany is not likely to repeat its past policy of territorial expansion through military conquest. Instead, as the most populous and economically strongest member of the European Community, Germany will likely take the lead in setting the political agenda for a united Europe. When the European Community was founded, Germany was a quiet member, content to subsidize inefficient French farmers and impoverished southern Italians in exchange for acceptance as a respectable ally and reliable trading partner. In the future, Germany will probably gain through economic competition what previous generations failed to obtain through military means: to be the most powerful state in the midst of the world’s largest market. This prospect worries its European neighbors.
Which of the following is NOT true of the unification of Germany?
选项
A、It contributed to reducing the threat of direct confrontation between the East and the West.
B、It helps to alleviate some problems existing in the former East Germany.
C、It was accomplished in 1990.
D、It brought together all the groups of people who speak German.
答案
D
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/f5ZO777K
0
专业英语八级
相关试题推荐
Theword"Motel"comesfrom"motor+hotel".Thisisanexampleof______inmorphology.
Theopensyllablereferstothesyllablethathasno
SomeChineselearnersofEnglishtendtopronounce"three"as"tree"and"this"as"dis".Thisiscausedby
WhichofthefollowingstatementsisNOTtheconcernofsociolinguists?
Whenthesuffix______isaddedtoaverb,itchangesthisverbintoanadjective.
Anystudentsettingoutonacademiccareerinscienceislikelytobecomeincreasinglyseparatedfromhumanitiesandsociety.Ev
RickSnyder,thegovernorofMichigan,thinksofhimselfasacan-dokindofguy.Hewasasuccessfulbusinessman,overseeingex
Thestudyofhowsoundsareputtogetherandusedtoconveymeaningincommunicationis
A、Becauseofpoliticaldisturbancethere.B、Becauseofeconomiccrisisthere.C、Becauseofsecuritythreatthere.D、Becauseoft
EconomicDeathSpiralJustrecentlythetrusteesofSocialSecurityandMedicareissuedtheirannualreportsontheprograms
随机试题
案例公司车间机械伤害事故【案情】2003年9月17日晚,某公司生产部挤塑车间发生一起工伤事故,现将事故通报如下。一、事故基本情况当事人:刘某参加工作时间:2002年3月,本工种工龄12个月安全教育情况:接受过入厂三级教育受伤部位:左手挠骨
行政机关根据法律、行政法规的规定,对直接关系公共安全、人身健康、生命财产安全的重要设备、设施进行随时抽查检验。对检验合格的,行政机关应当发给相应的证明文件。()
为纪念五四运动100周年,中共中央政治局就五四运动的历史意义和时代价值举行了集体学习。下列选项中关于五四运动及五四精神的说法错误的是:
操作系统按设备与内存之间信息交换的物理单位进行分类,设备可分为_______和_______两类。
腰麻的术中并发症为()
铸造全冠取模区的范围是
伤寒慢性带菌者哪个器官隐藏的细菌最多()
在钢筋混凝土结构内力分析时,可以考虑塑性内力重分布的构件是()。
中国特色社会主义道路的必由之路是()。
(清华大学2007年试题)Seariseasaconsequenceofglobalwarmingwouldimmediatelythreatenthatlargefractionoftheglobeliving
最新回复
(
0
)