The Two Faces of Nationalism

Nationalism is a powerful force that can unite people working towards a common goal, but when it is taken to the extreme it can cause major disharmony in society, evident in the numerous genocides during the Age of Imperialism, the Fascist party's rise to power, and the Japanese’s unwillingness to surrender during World War II. Nationalism is dangerous, because it warps the minds of the individuals in the organization, creates prejudice and discrimination, and can be easily manipulated into a weapon against humanity.

World war one was a very big part of our history and the first time all the countries fought. There was 4 main and big reasons of why this happened and those are, Militarism, Imperialism, Nationalism and Alliances. The one cause I think is the biggest or most influential was nationalism, which I hope to prove is right in this essay. Nationalism is something that we still fight with today to see who is the better country. Through this essay I hope to give you some reasons why I think this is the main reason the war broke out.

How did our country get here today? Were we always united in our decisions? At this point in time, the early 19th century, the U.S. had just bought Texas and California from Spain after the territories had gained their independence from Mexico. The U.S. believed that it was their destiny to inhabit the new territories. This is called Manifest Destiny.

During the period of the 1790s to 1830s, the nationalism of the American people led to the development of government and the expansion of America’s economy. First, Washington set the precedent of only being in office as President for two four year terms. This applies to the theme of nationalism because Washington’s pride for his country prevented him from becoming a king and overruling his people. Next, the Louisiana Purchase expanded the US territory and opened it up to more agriculture, trade, and exploration. This signifies nationalism because the expansion of America’s economy sparked pride in people that America could be more open to economic opportunities.

The industrial revolution that swept across Europe in the 19th century was vital to both the economic and social advancements that Continental Europe was able to achieve. Starting in the United Kingdom with small textile mills run by hard labor quickly transitioned to larger factories using unskilled workers. With the progression of the 19th century, the Great Britain no longer was the only nation going through a period of industrialization. Soon after, Britain’s breakthrough, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy began their own periods of industrialization. Throughout Prussia and the other small German states, the creation of factories and the move away from farming created problems. For many factory owners, they found replication to be all

Nationalism had the most significant impact on the outbreak of WWI. Throughout Europe, countries began to break away from the empires or other places they were apart of to become their own. Looking at Document D “The Balkans region of Austrian Empire was a particularly tense spot. It was home to a large amount of ethnic groups and had a history of uprisings.” it is clear to see that Nationalism had a major impact in WWI.

What would have happen if america never went through any problems? Now you may be thinking america has always been great. Well that’s not the case. We wouldn’t have become a more stronger independent country if we never had to solve problems. During the time of the early 1800s many different events were happening to contribute to America's situation of nationalism and sectionalism.

The primary source depicts a large group of people marching behind a man carrying a nationalist flag. This cartoon also shows that the leader is leading his followers off a cliff. The source is arguing that people will blindly follow their leaders when consumed by nationalistic fervor. The source presents the ideas that nationalism in a negative light because it leads to a packed mentality and numerous deaths. The negative view of nationalism is reinforced by the blind commitment of the people as no one questions whether the leader’s actions. The pack mentality created by nationalism although unifying it has also resulted an unquestioning culture following the leader. The problem behind this is that the unskilled and uncaring leader is going

The source states that nationalistic ideals can very easily cause harm to the citizens of a nation, and can also alter their thoughts and actions. This clearly suggests that it opposes nationalism; in fact, the source condemns nationalism by saying that it is to blame for most of the genocides that have occurred in the twentieth century. This indicates that any feeling of pride toward one’s own country can, given time, become devastating. This patriotic emotion, according to the source, has the full potential to inflate and to become an ultranationalistic feeling strong enough to spark conflict with other nations. In addition, the source mentions that flags are “bits of colored cloth that governments use first

During the latter half of the nineteenth century, Europe went through many significant changes that had great effects on their society. These changes were largely due to the Industrial Revolution that dates back hundreds of years, but shows most prominent influence during this time. The technological

Nationalism has become one of the most powerful uniting-and occasionally separating-powers of the modern age. Throughout history, there were numerous countries that exemplified both sides of this classic European belief. However, as time has passed, this pride and promotion of one’s country has developed far beyond the scope of Europe. Nationalist feelings fester in all parts of the globe now, and with that comes more complicated expressions of the sentiment, as well as carefully crafted governments that exist for the sole support of nationalist fervor.

One of the oldest and most recognized forms of group activity is participation in collective state identity. Pride in one’s nation is a phenomenon that can transcend race, gender, class, sexual orientation, physical proximity and many other social groupings. This topic development will explore the sociological concept of nationalism and patriotism in relation to group identity, beliefs and subsequent actions performed by members of specified nationality groups.

Not many could have anticipated the rapid rise of the European industry that was realized from industrial revolution. As a note, dominance in wage labor, rapid growth of cities and evolution of industries mostly from steel and iron factories were perhaps the greatest changes that were experienced. In economic changes, manifestations were evident through the increased rates of immigration to better places, rapid growth of cities as centers of trade and changes in the type of work and working structures. Socially, reorganization of family was experienced as well as changes in ownership of jobs, rural to urban migration as well as where and when to work (Lynn et al. 413-414). Politics also played a great role in

Often called “the People’s Spring”, the Revolutions of 1848 marked a time of political and social turmoil widespread across the European continent. It is during this time we see monarchies overthrown, the formation of new countries, and “radical ideologies” such as Nationalism, and Liberalism become the beliefs of the middle-class. The populations of European countries were growing at a rate never seen before. The masses started becoming agitated with the current monarchial system of government ruling across Europe in the nineteenth-century, and wanted change that would bring about individual freedom and equality. It is well known that the Revolutions of 1848 were multi-casual, and that there was not just one factor that can be

The concept of nationalism is in essence an odd organization that has had significant impacts in world history through shaping the political and social aspects of the society. As an important aspect in the development of the society, the concept of nationalism has basically been analyzed based on its impact on the emergence of nation-states across the globe. In most cases, these analyses have been conducted to determine the influence of nationalism on imperial breakdown i.e. the dissolution of empires. While the actual extent of the impact of nationalism on the imperial breakdown is uncertain, this concept has played a major role in the dissolution of empires. Generally, the transition to nationalism has contributed to significant effects in world history through shaping the political and social aspects of the society.