onsdag 17 juli 2019

“Do you know what a nation is”?


Close-up Photo of People Holding Usa Flaglets

Source: Pexels 

On 6 June, which is Sweden’s national day,  historian Herman Lindkvist made a post on Facebook expressing how he felt lot of confusion when members of the “cultural elite” as in the media were questioning the national day while celebration of the national day as in USA was a “normal thing” to do.[1] However, recent discussions about and criticisms of Trump’s behaviour showed that 4th July was not a day without political debates around collective identification. As the libertarian Reason magazine published its title “Trump’s militarized fourth of July parade makes America less great”.[2] There was no need to celeberate by behaving in sense of “pathological sense of victimhood”, as Isiash Berlin wrote in his book “The Crooked Timber of Humanity”,  and in sense of  national inadequacy as the case is in France. Instead, the message was that Americans celebrate the Fourth of July joyously with food and recreation

As Tucker argues in his book about right-wing collectivism, disagreement and confusion are parts of the political life in a political community as a nation.[3] Tucker exemplifies the meaning of the term nation by referring to 19th-century historian Ernst Renan writings about the nation which also inspired von Mises reasoning about classical-liberal view on nationhood. Not everything from Renan’s essay and reasoning can be applied as sensible or correct today but parts of his reasoning still be relevant for contemporary analysis as the following five criteria:


-       Dynasty. The view that there is ruling class which has created a nation as on basis of wars, treaties, alliances which can also remind of European feudal experience. Renan wrote at that time that nation can exist or be created without a “dynastic principle”, which for example was the case of the French revolution.

-       Religion. The view that there should be one religion per nation. But as history show, nations have been communities with members having different religions or different types of the same religion. Liberal ideas a religious freedom and harmony led to acceptance for different religious identifications within communities.

-       Race. The view that there should be one race (in modern sense as in USA based on skin colour and social constructions) per nation. Renan argued that even if the race was a large factor in primate societies, as tribes, creation of more civilized societies as via music, arts, literature, education, trade led to reduction of meaning of race during establishment of larger political communities. Also, thanks to modern science it is known that there is not “pure race”.

-       Language. The view that a language is the most vital aspect of nationhood. But having a same language is not always equal to having a same nation or political community. Canada and USA both have English, Brazil and Angola have Portuguese. Renan wrote that “languages invite people to unite…but it does not force them to do so”. For example, this is can be seen in cases of individuals having different dialects if feeling irritated in their interactions will try to speak more loudly and stronger on their local or regional dialects as in Stockholm and Scania. 

-       Geography. The view that nations are decided upon geographical boundaries. As history shows, nature and geography can be overcome as in cases of Hong-Kong belonging to United Kingdom or that Riga during 17-th century was the biggest town of Swedish kingdom. Renan wrote that “I know of no doctrine which is more arbitrary or more fatal, for it allows one to justify any or every violence.”[4]

So is there a way to explain a single factor to account for people’s sense of attachment to a political community? Is it about loyalty? Or about fiction? Or ideas? One keyword is – affection. As Tucker explains it in relation to Renan[5]:

In Renan’s view, nationhood is a spiritual principle, a reflection of the affections we feel toward political community—its ideals, its past, its achievements, and its future. Where your heart is, there is your nation. This is why so many of us can feel genuine feelings of joy and even belongingness during July 4th celebrations. We are celebrating something in common: a feeling we have that we share with others, regardless of religion, race, language (this is, after all, a country where “Despacito” is the number one pop hit), geography, and even ideology.

Similarly, can be said about for example 9 May (Europe day). And even if one day there will be some kind of world federation or United Planet of Humans with institutionalized global citizenship and democracy there will still be place for public holidays, civic rituals and celebrations on “sub-global” levels as in villages, towns, cities, regions, countries and unions.



[2] Reason. Trump’s Militarized Foruth of July Parade Makes America Less Great”. Publication date: 2019-07-04. Downloaded: 2019-07-17. Website: https://reason.com/2019/07/04/trumps-militarized-fourth-of-july-parade-makes-america-less-great/
[3] Tucker, RWC. p.57-60
[4] Tucker. RWC. p.61. Rennan also wrote that: “Man is a slave neither of his race nor his language, nor of his religion, nor of the course of rivers nor of the direc­tion taken by mountain chains. A large aggregate of men, healthy in mind and warm of heart, creates the kind of moral conscience which we call a nation.”
[5] Tucker. RWC. P.64

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