300041 Theories of nationalism (S) (WiSe 2010/2011)

How “modern” are nations? How are nations and nationalism embedded in the history and current dynamics of globalization? The seminar gives an introduction to current theories of nationalism: First, the focus is on so-called “modernist” approaches, i.e. writers such as Ernest Gellner or Benedict Anderson (“imagined communities”) who see nations and nationalism as genuinely modern phenomena. Second, the focus is on approaches such as “ethno-symbolism” that criticize these modernist approaches, particularly for neglecting the long-term historical roots of ethnies and nations (e.g. Anthony Smith). Third, we discuss recent contributions that try to refine these approaches in the light of novel research on global history or new developments in social theory. Besides giving an overview to the field, the seminar focuses on possible intersections between theories of nationalism and sociological theory in the “era of globalization”.

Bibliography

Anderson, Benedict: Imagined Communities. Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism, London: Verso, rev. ed., 2006
Bayly, Christopher A.: The Birth of the Modern World 1780-1914. Global Connections and Comparisons, London: Blackwell, 2004, ch. 6
Breuilly, John: Historians and the Nation, in: Peter Burke (Hrsg.): History and Historians in the Twentieth Century, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002, S. 55-87
Goswami, Manu: Rethinking the Modular Nation Form: Toward a Sociohistorical Conception of Nationalism, Comp. Stud. Soc. Hist. 44 (2002), S. 770–799
Smith, Anthony D.: Nationalism and Modernism. A Critical survey of recent theories of nations and nationalism, London; New York: Routledge, 1998
Wimmer, Andreas: Nationalist Exclusion And Ethnic Conflict: Shadows Of Modernity, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002