Nationalism Definition & Meaning Essay

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Examples of nationalism are seen everywhere in the world. The presence of national flags at sports events, advertisements that urge tourists to choose specific countries as tourism destinations, and the portrayal of the effects of terrorist activities and wars all over the world are stark indicators of nationalism. However, nationalism is an idea and belief that everybody claims to understand but very few can articulate and convey it in the true sense. Nationalism is to some extent comparable to being devoted to one’s country but while devotion can be described as being love for the country, nationalism centers more on the shape that a nation ought to take. Hence it has to encompass the emotional and cultural aspects as also the historical and political implications.

In being support for the nation, nationalism has different connotations by way of aim and origin of the issues being taken up. Nationalism is a vast area that cannot be exhaustively defined by the strongest nationalists but a basic objective is for the nation to succeed. It has been a subject matter of much dispute with both positive and negative features being hotly debated. Nationalism is often referred to as forming the national identity in exercising for a country, its right to defend and to have its own specific identity. It is also construed as opposing the influences of autocracy, domination, and oppression. Nationalism is seen as being a powerful means since it derives its strength from the sense of belonging to the nation that most people have. This trait has made politicians exploit the sentiments of individuals by making them united for a common national cause. It is for this reason that nationalism cannot be said to be the exclusive characteristic of the west or any group of nations.

A just war is waged when all nonviolent alternatives have been exhausted. Only then can the use of force be justified to achieve the solution to the given problems. The war is said to be just only if it is initiated by the lawful authorities. An action of war or aggression cannot be justified if it is taken by groups of people who do not have the legitimate authority vested with them by the society of the given nation. War is described as just only if it is waged to rectify wrongdoings, such as acts of self-defense against armed attacks. A just war has to be fought in keeping with the right intention and the sole objective of the war must be to only redress the oppression. It has to be waged if there are rational chances of success since injuries and deaths resulting from a fruitless endeavor cannot be justified morally. The purpose of the just war must be to restore peace which implies that the establishment of peace after the war should be a better option than the peace that could have prevailed if the war had not been fought. The extent of violence and aggression used in the just war has to be in almost equal proportion to the loss suffered by the act of the aggressor. Hence states are advised not to exceed the use of force that is more than what is required to address the losses suffered. The weapons used in the war should be such that combatants and civilians are differentiated. There is no permission to target civilians in a war and all possible efforts must be made to avoid the killing of noncombatants. The death of civilians can be warranted only when they become the victim of specific attacks on enemy targets.

Works Cited

Katy Hughes, What Is Nationalism? 2008, Web.

, Web.

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IvyPanda. 2021. "Nationalism Definition & Meaning." November 19, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/nationalism-definition-amp-meaning/.

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