Document Type
Honors Project
First Advisor
Dr. Jamie Frueh
Degree Award Date
Spring 2009
Keywords
American Nationalism, Violence, identity groups, group norms
Disciplines
Civic and Community Engagement | Social Psychology and Interaction | Sociology | Sociology of Culture
Abstract
Every nation has a unique national story; and everyone who belongs to a nation belongs to that story. Humans want to be a part of a story that is bigger than their own lives. They have the opportunity to partake in that larger story, and the choice to either make a violent or nonviolent impact on it. This same choice is before every nation-state. What kind of impact the nation will make depends on the ideology of the nation- its nationalism. Nationalism is a powerful force because it is a set of ideas about the nation that usually determine the national identity. In this paper I will discuss different theories regarding the formation of the nation, the imagined nature of nationalism, the way in which nationalism can be violent or nonviolent, and finally, whether or not American nationalism is necessarily tied to violence.
Recommended Citation
Marafino, Catherine, "American Nationalism: A Story of Violence" (2009). Honors Projects. 147.
https://digitalcommons.bridgewater.edu/honors_projects/147