Nations and nationalism - What is a nation? - Nations as political communities

4 important questions on Nations and nationalism - What is a nation? - Nations as political communities

What do nations as political entities emphasize?

Civic loyalties and political allegiances.
The nation is a group of people bound together primarily by shared citizenship.

Founded on a voluntary acceptance of a common set of principles or goals.

What form of nationalism emerged from the French Revolution?

French people were citizens possessed of absolute rights and liberties, no longer merely subjects of the crown.
Sovereign power thus resided with the French nation.

What are examples of political nations?

- UK; national identity based on common allegiance to the Crown etc.
- USA; multi-ethnic, multi-cultural character. Sense of Americanhood has been developed through the cultivation of respects for a set of common values.
- France; linked to traditions and principles of the 1789 French Revolution.
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Why have developing-world states struggled to achieve a national identity and how are they political?

- they have achieved statehood only after a struggle against colonial rule --> nation's national identity is deeply influenced by the unifying quest for national liberty and freedom (strong anti-colonial character).
- these nations have often been shaped by territorial boundries that were inherited from their formal colonial rulers (led to mismatch of political and ethnic identities, creating tensions).

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