Week 2 - States and "Nations"

Question 1

State

Answer 1

a political organization that (successfully) lays claim to a monopoly of legitimate coercive force over people and territory.

Question 2

Max Weber Definition of State

Answer 2

form of human community that (successfully) lays claim to the monopoly of legitimate physical violence within a particular territory.

Question 3

Political Organization

Answer 3

All the political institutions within an individual country; Government, courts, bureaucracy, military, police, etc.

Question 4

Monopoly

Answer 4

Sole ownership, no other legitimate coercive force

Question 5

Sovereignty (Legal Concept)

Answer 5

The exclusive legal authority of a government over its population and territory, independent of external authorities.

Question 6

Nation

Answer 6

A “nation” is a group of people who share a sense of belonging and solidarity deriving from shared language, religion, ancestry, and common history typically posited as common bonds.

Question 7

Nationalism

Answer 7

A principle which holds that the political and national unit should be congruent.

Question 8

Fact

Answer 8

For 99% of Mankinds history, people have lived in groups of 50 or less, which engaged in hunting and gathering.

This changed in 10,000 BC when plants and animals were domesticated.

Question 9

James Scott: Against The Grain

Answer 9

Researched Humans that were getting settled in.

• Great advancement in civilization, but showed life is harder and worse for the people than it was in the beginning of civilization.
• More coercion
• Rice and Grain = Key Development of a state

Question 10

Age of Empire

Answer 10

Subjects within an empire associated themselves within their “local world” (tribe, clan, village) instead of the broader community.

Question 11

When was the emergence of Modern States?

Answer 11

The 17th Century

Question 12

Formation of Modern States: (Hobsbawm)

Answer 12

France (1789): Essential to the concept of France, although 50% did not speak French, and only 12-13% spoke it correctly

Germany: Language was the basis of claims to “nationhood”, although only a small minority spoke for evryday purposes, rest spoke mutually incomprehensible idioms

Italy (1860): When unification occured, only 2.5% spoke language for everyday purposes

Question 13

Global Diffusion of Nationalism

Answer 13

• Nationalism was born in Europe, diffused globally by colonialism
• European states harvested different African parts
• South Sudan was the youngest state (2011)

Question 14

Nation Vs. State (TEST Q)

Answer 14

A state is a place with a government that uses a monopoly of legitmate coercive force over a people and territory, while a nation is a group of people who share the same sense of belonging and share similar attributes like ancestry, history, language, etc.

Very often, states do not conform to the imagined community of the “nation” (and vice-versa).

• Extreme Heterogeneity: States are much heterogeneous than a nation, they don’t have as much unity.

Ex. Nigeria has over 250 Ethic and Linguistic groups

• Stateless Nations:
  An ethnic, cultural, or national group that does not possess its own state or sovereign territory.

Ex. Kurs: ~ 30 million in Turkey, Iran, Iraq, & Syria

Question 15

Nation as “Imagined Community”

Answer 15

It is imagined because even the members of the smallest nation will never know most of their members, yet in the minds of each lives the image of their communion (connection among individuals)
* Seen as a comradeship regardless of inequality and exploitation that may prevail

Question 16

Primordialism Views

Answer 16

• National and ethnic identity are natural phenomena
• People are born into these identities
• Tensions between ethnic groups are more or less inevitable.

Question 17

Instrumentalism Views

Answer 17

• National and ethnic identity are fostered to serve the powerful
• Politicians and interest groups play on identity for their benefit
• Ethnicity is exploited in pursuit of political ends

Question 18

Constructivism Views
(More Complex)

Answer 18

• Identities are neither primordial or instrumental
• They are constructed historically through human interaction
• Identities are not fixed or singular. They are multiple and overlapping
• Different Identities are activated and reshaped in different contexts

Question 19

What are the key features and functions of the modern state?

Answer 19

Sovereignty:
* The modern state has authority over its territory and the people within it

Internal: Control over domestic affairs

External: Independance from foreign interference

Key Features:
* Border
* Territory
* Sovereign Government
* Monopoly of Legitimate Coercive Force over people and territory

Key Functions:
* Law and Order
* Social Welfare
* Economic Management
* Governance

Question 20

In what ways has nationalism been a negative or damaging force in international affairs? What positive roles does it also arguably play?

Answer 20

Negative:

• Conflict and War
• Hegemony (superiority over others, dominant ideologies)
• Isolation (Economic, us vs. them mentality)

Positive:

• Fosters National Unity
• Anti-Colonialism
• Promotes Self-Determination (choosing one’s own govt and political future)
• Cultural Preservation

Question 21

Genocide

Answer 21

Genocide is eliminating a specific group, whether its a nation or ethnic group with the purpose of getting rid of it as a whole.

Question 22

Ethnic Cleansing

Answer 22

Forcefully removing an ethnic group from a specific place, it does not always involve killing or violence.

Question 23

Historical Example of Nationalism’s Connection To Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing

Answer 23

A well known example of these historically would be the holocaust. The Nazi’s wanted to “cleanse” their area of the Jewish people. They did this with violent means. It was a genocide, which is a form of ethnic cleansing. The Nazi’s viewed themselves as a seperate nation from the Jewish people. In order to do this they commited a mass genocide.

Question 24

Elements of A “Fragile” or “Resilient” State

Answer 24

Social and Economic Indicators:

• Refugees
• Uneven Economic Development
• Group Grievance
• Poverty and Economic Decline

Political and Military Indicators:

• State Legitimacy (Corruption)
• Human Rights & Rule of Law
• External Intervention

Question 25

Are states inherently problematic? Do they have anything good to offer?

Answer 25

No, they are not.

They play a central role in organizing society, governance, and international relations. It is about how they are structured, governed, and how they interact with citizens and international community rather than being inherantly problematic.

Negative:
* Corruption
* Marginalization
* Infringement on Personal Freedoms
* Economic Inequality
* Conflicts

Positive:
* Order and Stability
* Protection and Rights
* Cooperation
* National Unity

Question 26

How would you characterize Canadian nationalism, both today and historically? Is it “ethnic”? Is it “civic”? What are the alternatives to national identity when considering political solidarities?

Answer 26

Canada is a civic nationalism.

Civic Nationalism: Based on shared values, democratic principles, legal rights

Ex. Charter of Rights and Freedoms

Ethnic Nationalism: Based on Ethnicity, Linguistic identity, and Cultural Homogeneity

Ex. Quebec - Ethnic Nationalism - Cultural and Linguistic Identity

Question 27

Self-Determination: Myanmar Follows Global Pattern In How Ethnic Cleansing Begins - New York Times Reading

Answer 27

The idea that a nation has the right to choose its own political status.
* Makes it an enemy of the freedoms it is intended to protect, It chooses who belongs in that nation and Who Is an Outsider
* Creates Mass Violence and even genocide for against the people who are considered outsiders

Question 28

The principle of national self-determination is a key element of the international system. According to Taub, a commitment to this principle increases the likelihood of conflict and violence. Why does she think this? Do you agree or disagree? Is there a way out of this conundrum?

Answer 28

According to Taub, the idea that a people have the right to freely determine their political status and pursue their economic, social, and cultural development—can increase the likelihood of conflict and violence.

• Conflicting Claims to Territory (Palestine Vs. Israel)
• Ethnic and identity Conflicts - A dominant one will always emerge, marginalizing the remaining ones.
• Threats to State Sovereignty
  (A group seeks to form an independent state)

There is merit to Taub;s argment that national self-determination increases the likelihood of conflict and violence, but the principle of self-determination is important for ensuring that peoples have the right to govern themselves and pursue their own interests.