Chapter 22 Self Reflection

I truly thought this was one of the more interesting chapters to read this year. The huge, radical change that occurred during this time period is astounding. Just the fact that four major revolutions occurred in the same year, 1848, is astounding, and is a testament to how powerful the feelings of nationalism truly were. Marx provided a new way of social thinking that would empower workers and lead to the formation of unions and protective services, and his philosophies would become very popular throughout the world. We despise him today because his philosophies have been skewed and abused by the nations that adopted his communist ideologies. The revolutions of 1848 really shaped Europe into the continent we know it as today, and as a result we see many of the smaller, very proud countries such as Greece and Hungary appear. Romanticism and its works are still very popular today, and the artwork and music of that period is still viewed with great reverence. Democracies were sprouting up across the continent, and they will become the governments of these countries up until this very day.