“nationalism Looks to the Past, Not the Future.”

“Nationalism looks to the past, not the future.” Discuss. (45)

The are many arguments for whether nationalism is a naturally backwards looking ideology. Points such as the definition of a nation is naturally historically defined and all nations having historical roots suggests that nationalism does look to the past more than the future. However there are many counter-arguments against the idea of nationalism being backwards looking. It can be argued that liberal nationalism is attempting to change things and that culture can be updated.

The definition of a nation is a group of people who share an identity, this could be race, language, history, culture etc. Therefore all nations hold historical roots that most nationalists wish to preserve. Since most nationalists want to preserve the historical aspects that helped defined their nation, they mainly look to how things where in the past and try restore or preserve any cultural aspects of the nations history.

However, liberal nationalism is commonly associated with the concept of self-determination, nations have the right to be free. Liberal nationalist look to how a nation can evolve to become free and how all nations can become equal. Liberal nationalists believe that the achievement of national self-determination is a means of establishing a peaceful and stable international order. Liberal nationalist look to forge a world of independent nation states.

Anti colonial nationalists wish to overthrow colonial rule, collectivisation of wealth (e.g rejection of western ideas) and establish a rationally based planning system. Anti colonial nationalism fuses the goal of self determination with a quest for political and economic freedom and social development. It can be argued that anti colonial nationalists are looking to the future, they wish to overthrow the higher power and become a free nation. It could, however, also be argued that anti colonial nationalists are backwards looking as they wish to return to a time before they were occupied by another nation.

Conservative nationalists reflect on past ages of national glory or triumph. To a conservative nationalist, society is organic and nations naturally emerge from the desire of human beings to live with others who