Customer Reviews

Nationalism (Master Minds S.)

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This little booklet is essentially a summary of the arguments and explanations that the late Ernest Gellner had already provided in his earlier, now almost classic text, "Nations and Nationalism" - since the latter book is still in print and its arguments are presented in much greater detail, I would recommend skipping this one (hence the low rating). Little new or original is offered here. Gellner's theory of nationalism is quite useful in that he persuasively shows how nationalism and the concept of nations are socio-political phenomena closely tied to modernity. His view that the concept of nation as broad community became a useful homogenizing tool for societies faced with industrialization and the ensuing urbanization, as well as economic growth and political centralization is generally plausible, at least in the European context. However, sometimes Gellner's sociological model seems a bit too rigid and excessively reliant on economic development and industrialization as causal factors. It fails to adequately explain why some genuinely nationalist movements emerged in some European areas long before industrialization and mass urbanization occurred (e.g. Greece, Serbia). Gellner's concept of national "time zones" seems based more on generalizations than a rigorous scrutiny of the various regional variants of nationalism (it's also Eurocentric, as the "time zones" are basically restricted to the territory of Europe). While he does address Islam and Muslim nationalism, Gellner does little to explain or even consider American nationalism (and all of its sub-variants, like Southern nationalism, Native American nationalism, etc.), or Central and South American nationalisms, to cite just a few examples. Thus, Gellner's theory is an effective tool in the study of nationalism, but it cannot by itself be considered a definitive explanation.

An essential (and short) book that helps the reader to navigate in some of the present day political and social questions. After defining the nation as "shared culture", Gellner explains the marriage of State and culture and its variations over time and place, according to time zones. The crucial discussion is on the link between nationalism and social conditions, and the roots of nationalism in modernity. A couple of chapters on Muslim fundamentalism are also illuminating to understand some of the current debates on the clash of civilizations (see Huntington). A highly recommended book for the scholar and for the active citizen. The major achievement of the book is Gellner's capacity of confuting conventional wisdom on the issue of nationalism.

For the great philosopher, Ernest Gellner, nationalism (the principle which maintains that homogeneity of culture is the basic social and political bond) is an offspring of Romanticism, which was a reaction against the Enlightenment and the coldness of Reason.
For the Romantics, man was made by his roots, by his cultural specificity, and not by (universal) reason. Translated into politics, this means the congruence between the political and the ethnic unit, or a `nation-state'.

Nationalism appears only in the third stage of the evolution of mankind, in the scientific/industrial society (after foraging and agriculture).
Scientifically, it was heavily boosted by Darwinism and its theory of biological diversification.
Philosophically, it was aided by `Protestant-type' religion, where every man is a priest in direct contact with his God. The Protestants translated the Holy Scriptures into the vernacular, which became the `national' language of all civil servants (the bureaucracy).

Nationalism has been one of the cardinal reasons of all the bloodshed in the world in the last two centuries (`Men have been impartial in their hate'). Therefore, Ernest Gellner stresses rightly that mankind needs supranational and super-ethnic authorities in order to prevent further disasters.

This book is a must read for all those interested in the history of mankind.