Nations, nationalism and national identity

Nations, nationalism and national identity

What is a nation?

• Language, culture, ethnicity?
• Nationality: ethnic and cultural identity
• Language, religion, common history & traditions want to uphold, common territory (not conditions but likely defining features)

• Imagined communities (Anderson)
• It is the magic of nationalism to turn chance into destiny
• Folklore, tradition, created symbols

Nationalism as ideology/movement

• Demands of the nationality are to translate these into a state form.
• Asserts validity of national traits for political ends
• Self determination is the demand by a nationality to become a state.

• Rousseau’s ‘general will’ and ‘popular sovereignty’: the foundation of nationalism?
• The French Revolution – sovereignty of the people and the nation. Established ‘patriotism’:
• Response in other European countries: German nationalism e.g.: a traditional form, willed by God, biological, racial and cultural traits: Prussia, 1871.

Waves of nationalism (Macridis)

• France – affected European nationalities
• End WWI – collapse Austro-Hungarian Empire, Romania and Bulgaria independent, Poland, Finland…
• End WWII – collapse of colonial power, e.g. the Middle East, Africa
• Collapse Soviet Union

Is nationalism inevitable?

• Implies right to statehood/self-government
• Identity, consciousness, redrawing boundaries and conflict: reconfirms the state system
• Do nations have the right to states?
• Examples: The Roma, the Palestinians, Israel

The break up of the nation state

• Examples, Yugoslavia: a return to nationalism?
• Iraq? UK?

The nation state

• A state and a nationality
• National sovereignty
• Katzenstein: Germany from semi-sovereign to sovereign state
• Milward: The European rescue of the nation state

Rise of the region state?

• Post national? Two trends – rise of nationalism and transnational developments
• Examples: European Union, Latin America? Pan-Arab nationalism
• Are they connected? Does supranational development and problems this creates for democratic representation CAUSE a rise of regional identity and nationalism?
• Glocalisation.

Challenges to the nation state

• International Organisations/Region states
• International norms and values?
• Creating national fragmentation?
• Enhance strong states?
• Are nation states undermined?

• International Law
• International law, e.g. US soldiers and ICC
• Milosovic on trial
• Environmental standards

• The market and international finance
• WTO; IMF; trade & aid packages
• Shell Oil
• US drugs’ patents
• International intervention
• Humanitarian intervention
• Nuclear proliferation

The transformation of the state and sovereignty?

• How do we map democracy on to changed contours of national sovereignty and the international community?
• Can we recreate through International Society?

Cosmopolitanism: citizens of the world?

• Universal values. Common standards that apply to all individuals and actions, through international law and international organisations.