Connor Beatty

September 8th, 2016

SS 20-1-132

Nationalism Response

1. I believe that nationalism can affect humans positively by assisting in

creating diverse, social communities. Since nations are based upon groups of
people that have at least one similar aspect of their lives, nationalism often
provides individuals with a feeling of belonging in a group that shares a value or
other similarity with the individual. This can fulfil ones desire for a sense of
belonging in a community. Nations are a method of labeling individuals together in
categories. The categories can be broad, such as, Canadian, Spanish-speaker,
and Urban, or the categories can be specific, like, French, Muslim Immigrants.
The broader nations can give individuals a sense of pride for being a part of
something monumental or of global importance; whereas smaller groups can help
individuals realize that other individuals exist with similar or identical faiths and
beliefs as theirs. While two members of a nation may have never met, they can feel
the same sense of pride in their nation. This can aid members of large nations in
feeling connected to every other member without knowing them by name. Larger
nations can also support various religions, landscapes, and walks of life, creating a
safe sense of diversity.

2. While nationalism has many positive aspects to it, there are negative
aspects to it as well.
Since many sub-cultures can exist inside of a nation, cultures with bigger
populations often attempt to marginalize cultures with smaller populations in the
same nation. This may be attributed to the feeling of Us versus Them that
nationalism can bring. Tensions can arise when shared experiences or feelings
within a nation conflict with differing ideas of another nation. These tensions may
escalate to rivalries. One example of conflict between two communities in a nation
is that some Christian belief systems do not support the rights of gay individuals,
specifically regarding marriage. With the Christian community being larger than that
of the gay community, and because of the Us verses Them feeling caused by

Connor Beatty
September 8th, 2016
SS 20-1-132
opposing beliefs, there have been attempts of marginalizing and assimilating the
gay community.
On a whole, I believe that nationalism is beneficial to humanity and culture.
While differences in cultures can cause conflict, the communities and bonds formed
by nationalism force humans to constantly improve society, creating a better earth
to live on. Additionally, conflicts caused by nationalism also address issues that may
otherwise be unnoticed. This is because these issues happen on larger scales, such
as a conflict between two countries. Similar conflicts of all sizes can then be
resolved in a similar fashion. In an earlier example, the right for gay people to get
married was discussed. Because this conflict was large enough to demand courts
and laws to come into play, the problem was shown on a global scale. As a result,
national values were considered, and for the U.S.A., this was motivation enough to
legalize gay marriage. The conflict caused by some negative aspects of nationalism
was reviewed and resolved by using some positive aspects of nationalism, such as
giving a sense of belonging and using the values and beliefs of an entire nation to
make decisions.

3. There are many factors that determine whether or not an individual is

considered as part of a nation. The most obvious, important factor, in my opinion, is
the location of residence. An individual is a part of the nation of Germany if they
reside in Germany, for example. However, there are many exceptions to this.
Because there can be many different nations in a country, other factors such as
religion, ethnicity, and lifestyle can be considered. Most nations will have factors
that are more important than other factors when deciding whether or not an
individual is part of that nation. Some nations value religion, such as Israel, while
some value ethnicity, language, and religion at a very high level, like Japan does. In
general, the factor that the majority of the members of a nation value most is the
factor that dictates the regulations for being a member of a nation. This can cause
problems for some groups because there may be a limited number of nations that
readily accept them. This shows that the system is not perfect, but the consensus of
the majority usually works well enough for most nations.

Connor Beatty
September 8th, 2016
SS 20-1-132
I feel that a sense of belonging is important for any individual. A sense
of belonging is a great source of not only peace and happiness, but also motivation.
Belonging to a nation larger than ones self can motivate an individual to work
towards a common goal of the nation. This usually brings a higher sense of
achievement, along with collective victory and pride. In other cases, a sense of
belonging can give an individual comfort that they may have never been able to
experience before. This is why I believe that a sense of belonging is beneficial for
individuals.