The Rise of Nationalism and the Collapse of the Ottoman Empire

About This Lesson

In the previous lesson, students examined historical and present-day antisemitism. This lesson continues the study of “We and They,” as students turn their attention to the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the emergence of a constitutional state with a strong current of ethno-nationalism rooted in Turkish identity. During this time, the Christian Armenian minority’s call for equality before the law, coupled with the loss of 75% of the Ottoman Empire’s European territory, threatened the new leaders’ sense of power and control. As a result, the Armenian people, as well as other Christian groups in the empire, including Greeks and Assyrians, became targets of mass violence and, later, under the cover of World War I, genocide. In this lesson, students will learn about the rise of Turkish nationalism and examine the challenges Armenians faced during the second half of the nineteenth century as they advocated for equal rights. Students will then consider how nations define their “universe of obligation” and the consequences that can befall individuals and groups who are excluded from this circle of responsibility.

By learning about the particular history of the Armenian struggle for equality and the conditions and choices that led to the Hamidian massacres (1895–1896) and the Armenian Genocide (1915–1918), students can begin to form more universal conclusions about the vulnerability and injustice experienced by those forced to live with second-class status because they have been excluded from a nation’s identity. These conclusions will also help students better understand and make connections to the fall of democracy and the rise of Nazism in Germany, which they will explore later in the unit.  

Essential Question

How can learning about the choices people made during past episodes of injustice, mass violence, or genocide help guide our choices today?

Guiding Questions

• How do groups, nations, and empires define their “universe of obligation”?
• What might be the consequences for individuals and groups who are excluded from a nation’s universe of obligation?

Learning Objectives

• Students will explore the rise of nationalism within the collapsing Ottoman Empire, which led to persecution of and mass violence against Armenians.
• Students will examine how the creation of “the other” within a society can lead to dire consequences for minority groups who can become vulnerable in the face of injustice and violence.

Activities

Activity 1: Introduce the Changing Geography of the Ottoman Empire

Start by explaining that in the next two lessons, students will apply what they’ve learned about the concept of “universe of obligation” to a specific historical case: the story of the Armenians, a Christian minority group within Ottoman Empire. By learning about the particular history of the Armenians, students will start to establish specific precedents for the history of the Holocaust they will learn about later in the unit.

To help students review the geography of the Ottoman Empire, project the first map in the image gallery The Changing Geography of the Ottoman Empire (1300–1920). Ask for volunteers to identify countries they can place on the map. Next, explain that in this lesson, students will be focusing on this region during the time period between the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Have students work in pairs to discuss the following questions for each map in the image gallery. Project each map for about 30 seconds.

• What do you notice about this map?
• What factors might account for the changing geography of the Ottoman Empire?
• What does this map make you wonder?

Briefly discuss as a class what students noticed and wondered.

Activity 2: Learn about the Rise of Nationalism in Turkey and the Fall of the Ottoman Empire

Explain to students that now they will watch a video that provides historical context for the plight of the Armenian people within the Ottoman Empire. Let students know that Armenians were the minority and did not have equal rights under Ottoman rule. During the years when the empire was strong and expanding, they lived in relative peace. However, as the Ottoman Empire started to collapse and nations in eastern Europe defeated Ottoman armies and declared their independence, the Armenian people, who were asking for equality before the law, became targets of mass violence and atrocities.

Pass out the handout The Armenian Genocide Viewing Guide and explain to students that they will be using it to collect information about the rise of Turkish nationalism within the Ottoman Empire and how this shift impacted the Armenian Christian minority. Also explain that you will pause the video so students can take notes on the handout without missing any of the important images.

Show the video clip from The Armenian Genocide (02:35–13:30), pausing three times (04:50, 07:45, 11:15) for note-taking. If you think students would benefit from collaboration, have them record notes with a partner when you pause the film. Or, to provide additional support, assign pairs of students one of the categories on the handout to focus on rather than asking them to take notes on all four.

After watching the video, invite students to share the information they gathered in pairs or small groups, adding notes to their own handouts about key ideas they missed.

Then discuss the video as a class by asking students use information from the film to respond to the following question: What are some of the conditions that led to the Armenians becoming targets of persecution and violence in the Ottoman Empire? Record notes on the board, clarifying information as needed. See the Notes to Teacher section for a list of some of the important information students should include on their handouts.

Activity 3: Discuss the Conditions that Led to the Vulnerability of the Armenian People

Facilitate a class discussion about the following questions, which you can project one at a time or distribute on a handout that you create. Time allowing, give students one or two minutes to process each question in writing or with a partner before discussing it together. Students can create a list of ideas for the first question and draw and label a universe of obligation graphic for the second question. If possible, record notes on the board or chart paper to refer back to during the next lesson about the Armenian Genocide.

In what ways did the Ottoman Turks signal who was part of their universe of obligation and who was not? What can this history teach us about what can happen when some individuals and groups fall outside of a nation’s universe of obligation?

Kate Cronin-Furman, a scholar who studies mass atrocities, observes that “when nations are defined around a majority ethnic group, that can lead to a sense of siege—a belief that the majority status needs to be protected, because if it shrinks, the claim of the majority on the nation could as well.”

• In your own words, summarize what Cronin-Furman might mean by a “sense of siege.”
• How can you apply Cronin-Furman’s ideas to the events in the Ottoman Empire that you learned about in this lesson?
• Where else in the past or recent history that you have studied has a majority felt a “sense of siege” and acted upon that feeling?

Activity 4: Reflect and Connect in an Exit Ticket Response

Have students respond to the following prompt on an exit ticket that you collect at the end of the class period:

• Today I learned that . . .
• This is important to my life because . . .
• Tomorrow I hope we review __________ from today’s lesson because . . .