The New Nationalism

Abstract

This chapter investigates the return of nationalism. It examines what provoked national feelings and national ideology and made them more relevant than ever. It also questions if nationalism is a dormant evil force waiting to pop out whenever there is a crisis, a force that must be repressed at all costs, or is it a constructive power, a worthwhile ideology that could and should be harnessed to make the world a better place. The chapter presents a case for nationalism, highlighting the ways it shaped public policy and made the years between the end of the world wars and the eruption of neoliberal globalism the best years for the least well-off members of the developed world. Some may say that these years were good ones because nationalism was repressed, allowing liberal democracy to flourish. The chapter argues, however, that many of the achievements of that period were dependent on an alliance between the nation and the state.