“Onze Westerse Beschaving”: A Conceptual History of the Idea of the West in the Netherlands, 1875-1994

Abstract

This research project traces the history of the idea of the West in Dutch discourse from the late 19th century up until the end of the Cold War. Through the use of quantitative methods such as word embeddings and n-gram analysis, applied to historical Dutch newspapers, the project demonstrates the Orientalist, cultural supremacist origins of the concept of the West and shows how the emphasis of the concept shifted over the course of the Cold War to become a concept of ideological superiority. Not only does this project contribute to the historiography on the idea of the West, but it also re-evaluates methodological innovations in the field of conceptual history, by incorporating both quantitative and qualitative methods to mutually support each other. By performing a close reading of Johan Huizinga’s final work Geschonden wereld, we witness the discursive shift, uncovered through the quantitative methodology of the project, occurring in actual historical discourse. Onze westersche beschaving aids in deconstructing the concept, which plays a leading role in current geopolitical tensions, and can help us re-evaluate the legitimacy and meaning of this idea.