Synopses & Reviews
Being national is the condition of our times, yet never before has the idea of the nation been under such scrutiny. With the collapse of the bi-polar world of the Cold War, there has also been a parallel rise in the subnational--the claims of local, regional, and ethnic minorities--economic globalization, American cultural hegemony, international migration, and diasporization. In Becoming National Eley and Suny, two of the foremost authorities on nationalism, acknowledge these changes by combinging a diverse selection of readings with a unifying introduction and instructive headnotes, creating a text that moves the discussion of nationalism onto a new and contemporary level. Each group of readings is introduced by a brief historical essay, and the readings are fully annotated. Emphasizing the recent intellectual advances and influential ideas of Miroslav Hroch, Benedict Anderson, Paul Gilroy, Stuart Hall, Lauren Berlant, and a host of others, this book underscores the nineteenth and twentieth century nationalist theories to show not only where scholars of nationalism have been but where they are going. Drawing on the strengths of recent cultural studies, including race and gender identities, the editors show that though politics is the ground upon which nationalism is constructed, culture is the terrain on which it is elaborated and fought over.
Review
"This book strikes me as superior!"--Joseph Rothschild,
Columbia University, author of
Return To Diversity"Excellent anthology with good choice of topics. Excellent introduction to problems of modern nationalism."--Lohr E. Miller, Louisiana State University
"Not the usual suspects--a very interesting collection of people many American scholars are unfamiliar with."--Lawrence Rosen, Princeton University
"This is a collection of works that immensely illuminate a major socio-political phenomenon in many parts of the world today--nationalism."Ufot B. Inamete, Florida A&M University
"This is the best available text on nationalism. It includes both the most important classic articles and the most stimulating recent contributions to the literature. The theoretical and empirical breadth of this compilation is exceptional."--Zoltan Barany, University of Texas
"An excellent reader. The pieces are long enough to give substance to the argument."--Peter G. Wallace, Hartwick College
"This book looks superb. An excellent collection".--Prof. Gary Buckley, Northern Arizona University--Flag Staff
"The scholarship is superb, clear and crisp writing as well as a thorough, well documented, and intelligent discussion of a number of important issues related to one more important political dilemmas of the post colonial era".--Dr. Clinton G.Hewan, Northern Kentucky University--Highland Heights
Review
"This book strikes me as superior!"--Joseph Rothschild, Columbia University, author of Return To Diversity
Table of Contents
Introduction 1. Classical Foundations
"What Is a Nation?, Ernest Renan
"Ethnic Groups", Max Weber
2. What Do Nations Come From?
"Nationalism", Ernest Gellner
"From National Movement to the Fully Formed Nation", Miroslav Hroch
"Scotland and Europe", Tom Nairn
"The Origins of Nations", Anthony D. Smith
"The Nation Form", Etienne Balibar
"Historicizing National Identity", Prasenjit Duara
"Census, Map, Museum", Benedict Anderson
"Peasants and Danes", Uffe Ostergard
"Mass-Producing Traditions", Eric Hobsbawm
"The USSR as a Communal Apartment", Yuri Slezkine
3. Colonialism, Race and Identity
"Nationalism as a Problem in the History of Political Ideas", Partha Chatterjee
"No Longer a Future Heaven", Anne McClintock
"Sexual Affronts and Racial Frontiers", Ann Stoler
"Basques, Anti-Basques and the Moral Community", Marianne Heiberg
"Race and the Issue of National Identity in Israel", Roselle Tekiner
"Ethnicity: Identity and Difference", Stuart Hall
"One Nation Under a Groove", Paul Gilroy
"The Ambiguities of Authenticity", Julie Skurski
4. Beyond the Nation
"The Decline of the Nation State", David Held
"National Identity", Renata Saleci
"The Nation-State and Its Others", Khachig Tololyan
"National Geographic", Liisa Malkki
"No Place Like Heimat", David Morley and Kevin Robbins
"Rac(e)ing the Nation", Jeffrey M. Peck
"The Theory of Infantile Citizenship", Lauren Berlant
Index