National identity is a sense of a nation and its people as a connected whole from an internal and external perspective (internal, as the people of that nation see themselves, and external, as the rest of the world views the people of that nation), which has developed over time. The development of ‘identity’ is something very important, which means that every human being is trying to find out the answer to who they are or where they belong to in society. Identification with a group is indispensable for social coherence and is the prerequisite for solidarity and helpfulness.
The poem ‘Theme for English B’ by Langston Hughes depicts a young black man who is trying to figure out what is true in his life via an English assessment. As the only black student in his class, he does not know whether to take on the persona of a typical English student regardless of race, skin color or stay true to his heritage and culture. The poem conveys a struggle for identity, as the black student is having a hard time identifying himself as one or the other. In the first stanza, the student starts to doubt himself and lists everything that sets him apart from his classmates. Including that he is the only African American student in his class and that he resides in Harlem. In the third stanza, the student starts listing traits and similarities between him and his peers. “I like to eat, sleep, drink, and be in love, I like to work, read, learn, and understand life”. By doing that he shows us things he has in common with his peers, even though they are different in appearance. His dilemma is trying to figure out who is and where he fits into a world dominated by white people. He wonders: “So, will my page be colored that I write”. The student is both a part of Harlem and a mostly white English class: “I feel and see and hear, Harlem, I hear you: hear you, hear me—we two—you, me, talk on this page”. While he holds into his African American heritage, he also acknowledges that it does not have to define him as a person. “I guess being colored doesn't make me not like the same things other folks like who are other races”. The speaker comes to the conclusion, that even though his different from his classmates, in some ways they all American with common values and interests.
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The song lyrics ‘Made in America’ by Toby Keith is distinctly different from the poem. It is about identifying yourself with the American values. In the song he mainly talks about his traditional American family that get frustrated over “foreign cars filled with fuel that isn't Randa Mock exam 1stb ours”. And further he talks about buying and using American products, “Spends a little more in the store for a tag. In the back that says USA”. 'Made in USA' is a label protected by the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC. In order for an item to be called such, the item must be made within the United States. He also talks about his wife being obedient and perfect. “She’s golden rule”. Saying and doing traditional activities as celebrating the fourth of July, saying the pledge of alliance etc. The lyric is mainly about love for one’s country and nation. “He’s got the red, white, and blue flying’ high on the farm”. “Patriotism, feeling of attachment and commitment to a country or nationalism”. In this lyric the speaker is proud to be American and does not have any ‘identity crisis’, as we see in the poem. He is and identify himself as proud American, which is very obvious from the title “Made in America.
Nationalism emerged as a political movement in Europe in the 19th century after the French Revolution in 1789–1799. Yet, patriotism has its origins some 2,000 years prior to the rise of nationalism in the 19th century. This essay will attempt to define the terms nationalism, patriotism and national identity and discuss the terms nationalism and how globalization is likely to have an effect on national identity.
National identity is the sense of belonging to one nation or state. National identity plays a significant role in shaping a person’s identity. National identity is not an inborn trait however it may refer to the feeling a person shares with a group or nation. National identity results from everything we are surrounded by, including music, radio, television, national symbols, etc. People incorporate national identity into their personal identities by adapting certain beliefs, values and morals which fits their national identity. National identity is viewed in phycological term as “an awareness of difference a feeling and recognition of we and they”. The positive side of national identity may be patriotism feeling of attachment and commitment to a country, nation, or political community.
Patriotism is associated with the love of law and liberty of the city. On the other side we have the extreme expression of nation. “Patriotism (love of country) and (loyalty to one’s nation)”, which is the strong belief in the country’s superiority and power and one’s loyalty to their country. Nationalism is both a sense of belonging people can have and a political ideology.
By definition, “nationalism is an ideology that emphasizes loyalty, devotion, or allegiance to a nation or nation-state and holds that such obligations outweigh other individual or group interests”. For example, many Americans feelings belong to the country and consider themselves part of a national society. There is, to some extent, a product that many historical actors have taken concrete and political action to promote this, for example by building common national institutions. A political nationalist movement has thus played and developed a national connection.
Nationalism can be both extreme and moderate. Nationalism exists in both moderate and extreme form. Nazism in Germany before and during World War II is an example of extreme nationalism. Norwegian patriotism is an example of moderate nationalism. Moderate nationalism is based on compromises. Moderate nationalism is common in many countries, including Norway. Moderate nationalism accepts immigration and admission of new citizens, but expects adaptation to the country's language and customs. On the other hand, radical nationalist parties usually oppose immigration from other cultural areas or immigration criticism. Radical nationalist politics has in many cases led to war and violent conflict, as in Germany's 1930s policy.
Nationalism as a movement was important in the creation of modern nations and in democratization. It also played a central role in the liberation of the colonies and the establishment of states in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Soviet Union. The historical role of nationalism does not mean that it is finished as a political force. Immigration has created new challenges for national states and has led to a resurgence of immigration- critical and nationalist parties. In several countries, such as Spain and Scotland, nationalism plays a potentially destabilizing role.
Globalization is the spread of products, technology, information, and jobs across national borders and cultures. In economic terms, it describes an interdependence of nations around the globe fostered through free trade. The world is becoming more globalized. It might be added though, that rapid expansion of globalization and penetration of global forces into local societies and their markets inflicts feelings of insecurity, fear and disillusion in many regions of the world. Trump declaration of him being a nationalist got a lot of negative comments. Trump stated that him saying “I am nationalist” is another way of saying America is first. For Trump the opposite of nationalism is not patriotism but globalization. By Trump’s account, all recent presidents have been globalists, not nationalists: “For many, many years our leaders have been more worried about the world than they have about the United States and they leave us in the mess”. Globalization can have a negative effect on national identity by making decisions for the world and not the country and also by making already rich people richer and the poor people mired in poverty. Globalization creates a political system where the biggest and richest people have the most influence and the lower classes has less or none impact.
Summing up, national identity plays a huge rule in forming a person’s identity. Some people may have one or several identities. National identity is the sense of belonging to one nation or state. Nationalism is an ideology that emphasizes loyalty, devotion, or allegiance to a nation or nation-state and holds that such obligations outweigh other individual or group interests, while patriotism is the feeling of attachment and commitment to a country, a person’s love for a country. Nationalism can be both extreme and moderate. The Nazis in Germany is an example of extreme nationalism. Globalization will have a big effect on the world by making already rich people richer and the poor people mired in poverty.
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