Keps 107
Keps 107
Nationalism
Overview
This chapter will introduce and discuss the ideas of nationalism and nation. Our
concern will be not so much to understand why nationalism has arisen, or what
functions it serves; rather our concern would be to think carefully about nationalism
and assess its claims and aspirations. After studying this chapter you should be
able to:
o understand the concepts of nation and nationalism.
o acknowledge the strengths and limitations of nationalism.
o appreciate the need for ensuring a link between democracy and nationalism.
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7.1 INTRODUCING NATIONALISM
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Nationalism
empires in the early twentieth century in Europe as well as the
break-up of the British, French, Dutch and Portuguese empires in
Asia and Africa. The struggle for freedom from colonial rule by India
and other former colonies were nationalist struggles, inspired by the
desire to establish nation-states which would be independent of
foreign control.
The process of redrawing state boundaries continues to take
place. Since 1960, even apparently stable nation-states have been
confronted by nationalist demands put forward by groups or regions
and these may include demands for separate statehood. Today, in
many parts of the world we witness nationalist struggles that
threaten to divide existing states. Such separatist movements have
developed among the Quebecois in Canada, the Basques in northern
Spain, the Kurds in Turkey and Iraq, and the Tamils in Sri Lanka,
among others. The language of nationalism is also used by some
groups in India. Arab nationalism today may hope to unite Arab
countries in a pan Arab union but separatist movements like the
Basques or Kurds struggle to divide existing states.
We may all agree that nationalism is a powerful force in the
world even today. But it is more difficult to arrive at agreement
regarding the definition of terms like nation or nationalism. What
is a nation? Why do people form nations and to what do nations
aspire? Why are people ready to sacrifice and even die for their
nation? Why, and in what way, are claims to nationhood linked to
claims to statehood? Do nations have a right to statehood or national
self-determination? Or can the claims of nationalism be met without
conceding separate statehood? In this chapter we will explore some
of these issues.
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7.2 NATIONS AND NATIONALISM
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Shared Beliefs
Nationalism
First, a nation is constituted by belief. Nations are not like mountains,
rivers or buildings which we can see and feel. They are not things
which exist independent of the beliefs that people have about them.
To speak of a people as a nation is not to make a comment about
their physical characteristics or behaviour. Rather, it is to refer to the
collective identity and vision for the future of a group which aspires
to have an independent political existence. To this extent, nations
can be compared with a team. When we speak of a team, we mean a
set of people who work or play together and, more importantly,
conceive of themselves as a collective group. If they did not think of
themselves in this way they would cease to be a team and be simply
different individuals playing a game or undertaking a task. A nation
exists when its members believe that they belong together.
History
Second, people who see themselves as a nation also embody a sense
of continuing historical identity. That is, nations perceive themselves
as stretching back into the past as well as reaching into the future.
They articulate for themselves a sense of their own history by drawing
on collective memories, legends, historical records, to outline the
continuing identity of the nation. Thus nationalists in India invoked
its ancient civilisation and cultural heritage and other achievements
to claim that India has had a long and continuing history as a
civilisation and that this civilisational continuity and unity is the
basis of the Indian nation. Jawaharlal Nehru, for instance, wrote in
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his book The Discovery of India, “Though outwardly there was diversity
and infinite variety among the people, everywhere there was that
tremendous impress of oneness, which held all of us together in
ages past, whatever political fate or misfortune had befallen us”.
Territory
Third, nations identify with a particular territory. Sharing a common
past and living together on a particular territory over a long period
of time gives people a sense of their collective identity. It helps
them to imagine themselves as one people. It is therefore not
surprising that people who see themselves as a nation speak of a
homeland. The territory they occupied and the land on which they
have lived has a special significance for them, and they claim it as
their own. Nations however characterise the homeland in different
ways, for instance as motherland, or fatherland, or holy land. The
Jewish people for instance, in spite of being dispersed and scattered
in different parts of the world always claimed that their original
homeland was in Palestine, the ‘promised land’. The Indian nation
identifies with the rivers, mountains and regions of the Indian
subcontinent. However, since more than one set of people may lay
claim to the same territory, the aspiration for a homeland has been
a major cause of conflict in the world.
Shared Political Ideals
Fourth, while territory and shared historical identity play an important
role in creating a sense of oneness, it is a shared vision of the future
and the collective aspiration to have an independent political existence
that distinguishes groups from nations. Members of a nation share
a vision of the kind of state they want to build. They affirm among
other things a set of values and principles such as democracy,
secularism and liberalism. These ideals represent the terms under
which they come together and are willing to live together. It represents,
in other words, their political identity as a nation.
In a democracy, it is shared commitment to a set of political
values and ideals that is the most desirable basis of a political
community or a nation-state. Within it, members of political
102 community are bound by a set of obligations. These obligations
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arise from the recognition of the rights of each other as citizens. A
nation is strengthened when its people acknowledge and accept
their obligations to their fellow members. We might even say that
recognition of this framework of obligations is the strongest test of
loyalty to the nation.
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DEMAND FOR NATIONAL S ELF- DETERMINATION IN BASQUE
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Indeed most states had more than one ethnic and cultural
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and cultural identity of minorities within the
state would find it difficult to gain the loyalty
of its members.
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TAGORE’S CRITIQUE OF NATIONALISM
Political Theory
”Patriotism cannot
be our final
spiritual shelter; my
refuge is humanity.
I will not buy glass
for the price of
diamonds, and I
will never allow
patriotism to
triumph over
humanity as long as
I live.”
This was said by Rabindranath Tagore.
He was against colonial rule and asserted
India’s right to independence. He felt that
in the British administration of the colonies,
there was no place for ‘upholding of dignity
of human relationships,’ an idea which was
otherwise cherished in the British
civilisation. Tagore made a distinction
between opposing western imperialism and
rejecting western civilisation. While Indians
should be rooted in their own culture and
heritage, they should not resist learning
freely and profitably from abroad.
A critique of what he called ‘patriotism’
is a persistent theme in his writings. He
was very critical of the narrow expressions
of nationalism that he found at work in
parts of our independence movement. In
particular, he was afraid that a rejection of
the west in favour of what looked like Indian
traditions was not only limiting in itself; it
could easily turn into hostility to other
influences fr om abroad, including
Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastrianism and
Islam which have been present in our
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Considerable generosity and skill is needed for countries to be able
to deal with such demands in a democratic manner.
To sum up, the right to national self-determination was often
understood to include the right to independent statehood for
nationalities. But not only would it be impossible to grant
independent statehood to every group that sees itself as a distinct
cultural group, or nation, it would probably also be undesirable. It
might lead to the formation of a number of states too small to be
economically and politically viable and it could multiply the problems
of minorities. The right has now been reinterpreted to mean granting
certain democratic rights for a nationality within a state.
The world we live in is one that is deeply conscious of the
importance of giving recognition to identities. Today we witness
many struggles for the recognition of group identities, many of which
employ the language of nationalism. While we need to acknowledge
the claims of identity, we should be careful not to allow identity
claims to lead to divisions and violence in the society. We need to
remember that each person has many identities. For instance, a
person may have identities based on gender, caste, religion,
language, or region, and may be proud of all of them. So long as
each person feels that he/she can freely express the different
dimensions of his/her personality, they may not feel the need to
make claims on the state for political recognition and concessions
for any one identity. In a democracy the political identity of citizen
should encompass the different identities which people may have.
It would be dangerous if intolerant and homogenising forms of
identity and nationalism are allowed to develop.
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3. “We have seen that nationalism can unite people as well as divide
them, liberate them as well as generate bitterness and conflict”.
Illustrate your answer with examples.
5. Illustrate with suitable examples the factors that lead to the emergence
of nationalist feelings.
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