Two world wars engulfed large areas of the world and impacted large populations inside and outside Europe. In the post-World War II era, with the rise of international organizations and globalization, many argued that we have moved into a new epoch and context in which traditional nation-states will increasingly lose their power. They called it the global age in which the world has turned into a global village. These thinkers and their hasty announcements were proven wrong. The rise of nationalist movements that promoted discourses of exclusion and self-determination, at times through violent means, shows how nation-states, their border and boundaries, and ideologies of sovereignty are here to stay as main international players.
This course, through a historical lens, investigates some of the scholarly debates around nationalism and nation-building processes to learn: What are nations, and what is nationalism? How are nations built and preserved? What role do history, memory, and law play in these processes? Is there a style or type of nationalism that is better than others? How do nationalism and national belonging manifest themselves in our daily practices? What is the relationship between national identity, race, gender, and law? What role do borders and boundaries play in nation-building projects? Due to the vastness of the literature on nationalism, we will not have different readings that explore different theories of nationalism. I, however, will teach them as the opportunity arises. This class aims to understand what nations are and what nationalism is.
To achieve the learning objectives (listed below) we will engage not only with the scholarship on nationalism, but also some inspiring literary works such as Rhinoceros by Eugène Ionesco or Burrow by Franz Kafka, documentaries such as Trials of Muhamad Ali, and plays like The House of Bernarda Alba by Federico García Lorca. Although these pieces are not considered academic, they contain a lot of wisdom. They will allow us to see how history and social structures incarnate in our daily lives and and how we interact with them. Accompanied with some empirical pieces, these materials allow us to bring theories down to earth and investigate them in action.
This course is an extensive reading and writing class. Students are expected to finish assigned readings before class, actively participate and facilitate sessions, and produce analytical reflective essays and a final paper.