Nationalism

1
Dr. David Galbreath Lecturer in Politics and
International Relations d.galbreath_at_abdn.ac.uk Off
ice F36 Edward Wright Building Hours Tuesday
10-12
2
Nationalism

• PI2004 Political Ideologies

3
Nationalism today

• First, where have we seen nationalist movements?

• Europe?
• The Americas?
• Africa?
• Asia?
• The Middle East?

4
Nationalism as a political ideology

• What is a nation?
• What is nationalism?
• What role has nationalism played in the
  development of the modern state?
• What is the impetus for nationalism?
• What is the relationship between nationalism and
  democracy?

5
What is a nation?

• Renan A nation is a soul, a spiritual
  principle
• Stalin A nation is primarily a community, a
  definite community of people.
• Weber A nation is based upon sentiments of
  prestige, which often extend deep down to the
  petty bourgeois masses of political structures
  rich in historical attainment of
  power-positions.
• Anderson an imagined community

6
What is a nation?

• Are there different types of nations?
• Civic vs. Ethnic nations
• Does this scheme work?
• Can we talk about western and an eastern
  nationalisms? (Kohn, Greenfeld)

7
What is nationalism?

• Kedourie Nationalism is a form of secular
  millenarianism.
• Gellner Nationalism is a political response to
  modernity.
• Nairn Nationalism is a political response to
  repression.
• Hobsbawm Nationalism is invented by elites to
  legitimise their power.

8
What role has nationalism played in the
development of the modern state?

• According to Edward H. Carr, there have been
  three phases of nationalism
• Break down of Roman hegemony over the church and
  the creation of national states.
• The rise of nationalism after the Napoleonic Wars
  until the First World War.
• Following the breakdown of European empires in
  the 20th century.

9
What role has nationalism played in the
development of the modern state?

• The rise of the nation-state system

10
What is the impetus for nationalism?

• By defining nationalism, we go someway to
  explaining what causes nationalism.
• Traditionally, there have been two broad
  approaches to nationalism
• Primordialism
• Instrumentalism

11
What is the impetus for nationalism?

• So, what theoretical approaches are there to
  nationalism based on these definitions?
• Cultural constructionists
• Structuralists
• Social-psychological
• Elite determinism

12
What is the impetus for nationalism?

• While Marx argued that modernisation would lead
  to the breakdown of national identities, history
  has shown us otherwise (Soviet Union, Yugoslavia)
• Others argue that rather than breakdown national
  identities, modernisation actually increases
  their salience.

13
What is the impetus for nationalism?

• What are the options for nationalist movements?
• Greater autonomy
• Secession (independence)
• Irredentism
• Why do some groups wish to go further than
  greater autonomy?

14
What is the impetus for nationalism?
Potential Secessionist, by group and regional
position
15
What is the relationship between nationalism and
democracy?

• A modern democratic state is based on the
  participation of the demos.
• How do you define the demos? Nationalism?
• Democracy is most likely to survive in
  circumstances were a salient idea of nation
  overlaps with that of the state.

16
Are we headed towards a post-nationalist world
system?

• Will national identities mean less and less over
  time?
• Scotland vs. the UK vs. Europe vs. Globalisation
• Are we witnessing the death of nationalism?