Imagined communities: Reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism

Series Editor's Preface. Introduction by John Breuilly. Acknowledgements. 1. Definitions. State and nation. The nation. 2. Culture in Agrarian Society. Power and culture in the agro-literature society. The varieties of agrarian rulers. 3. Industrial Society. The society of perpetual growth. Social genetics. The age of universal high culture. 4. The Transition to an Age of Nationalism. A note on the weakness of nationalism. Wild and garden culture. 5. What is a Nation. The course of true nationalism never did run smooth. 6. Social Entropy and Equality in Industrial Society. Obstacles to entropy. Fissures and barriers. A diversity of focus. 7. A Typology of Nationalisms. The varieties of nationalist experience. Diaspora nationalism. 8. The Future of Nationalism. Industrial culture - one or many?. 9. Nationalism and Ideology. Who is for Nuremberg?. One nation, one state. 10. Conclusion. What is not being said. Summary. Select bibliography. Bilbliography of Ernest Gellner's writing: Ian Jarvie. Index

Nations and Nationalism

In his seminal work \"The Clash of Civilizations\" and the \"Remaking of World Order,\" Samuel Huntington argued provocatively and presciently that with the end of the cold war, \"civilizations\" were replacing ideologies as the new fault lines in international politics.His astute analysis has proven correct. Now Professor Huntington turns his attention from international affairs to our domestic cultural rifts as he examines the impact other civilizations and their values are having on our own country.America was founded by British settlers who brought with them a distinct culture including the English language, Protestant values, individualism, religious commitment, and respect for law. The waves of immigrants that later came to the United States gradually accepted these values and assimilated into America's Anglo-Protestant culture. More recently, however, national identity has been eroded by the problems of assimilating massive numbers of primarily Hispanic immigrants, bilingualism, multiculturalism, the devaluation of citizenship, and the \"denationalization\" of American elites.September 11 brought a revival of American patriotism and a renewal of American identity. But already there are signs that this revival is fading, even though in the post-September 11 world, Americans face unprecedented challenges to our security.\"Who Are We?\" shows the need for us to reassert the core values that make us Americans. Nothing less than our national identity is at stake.Once again Samuel Huntington has written an important book that is certain to provoke a lively debate and to shape our national conversation about who we are.\\

Diasporas, Foreign Governments, and American Politics: An Excerpt from "Merging America with the World," in Who Are We? the Challenges to America's National Identity

The revolt of the elites and the betrayal of democracy

The Politics of Multiculturalism: Pluralism and Citizenship in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. Robert W. Hefner. ed. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2001. 319 pp.

The Politics of Multiculturalism: Pluralism and Citizenship in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.

This paper examines how Malaysia's 1996 Education Act, which is based on a multiculturalism-type approach, has influenced ethnic polarization in primary and secondary education. This is done through research on the enrolment trend of Chinese Malaysians. Most Chinese have not regarded the Act as an expression of a multiculturalism-type approach but rather as a continuation of the assimilationism-type approach that had been practiced since 1961. This is due in part to many ambiguities in the 1996 Act and in its implementation. The Act has, therefore, not influenced Chinese enrolment trends to any notable extent. The Act and its many ambiguities have not worsened ethnic polarization either nor has it had much impact one way or another on national integration.

Noriyuki Segawa

Papers

Malaysia's 1996 education act: The impact of a multiculturalism-type approach on national integration