Introduction
Nationalism can be defined as the attitude or feeling that people from a given nation have in regard to their national identity or the actions taken by people of a particular nation in an effort to establish their identity and self determination (Anonymous, 2001).
Nationalism has various effects to the people involved and this paper looks into the effects of nationalism on the roles of the working class, women, and minorities in an effort to achieve political power through both peaceful and violent revolutions during the period of 1789-1871 and the implications of the changing roles in various countries in Western Europe.
Background Information
Nationalism was a concept that existed in most parts of Europe and is considered to be very important in the history and development of Europe to the current state. It is considered to be primarily a phenomenon of Western Europe. It started in Germany and was later adopted in Italy, France, Spain and England.
There was the formation of many nationalistic and socialistic political parties in places like Spain, Romania, Germany and Italy among other places. Most of the parties however were not very successful and failed after a short time with some exception of those in places like Italy and Germany.
This is as a result of use of violence by most of the parties a practice that led to intervention by law enforcers where actions were taken to stop the parties’ activities as they were considered a threat to the society. Many revolutions were involved in the spread of nationalism ideologies, for instance, the French revolution and more revolutions kept on emerging the most notable one being those that took place in 1848 (Leoussi, 2001).
How The Rise Of Nationalism Affected The Efforts Of The Working Class, Women, And Minorities To Achieve Political Power By Both Peaceful And Violent Revolution During The Period Of 1789-1871
The rise of nationalism had both positive and negative effects to the nations in which it was experienced. This was mostly seen in different people in the society in their efforts to attain political power for instance those who held different working positions, women and also the minorities in the nations. The political power was meant to be achieved through peaceful revolutions and also through revolutions where some violence was involved.
The French revolution of 1789 marked the beginning of the effects of nationalism in Europe. Liberal nationalism brought about the issue of right to vote. The right to vote and get political power through election was only granted to the working men or those who owned property. In most instances, women were reduced to the level of minors and were expected to respect and work under the authority of men such as their husbands and fathers.
The women were also given the roles of mothers and protecting the health of family and faced a lot of bad treatment for instance beatings, torture, rape and even sometimes murder. This led to the formation of opposition movements by the women and the men who owned no property throughout the nineteenth century and in the early years of the twentieth century. The movements were aimed at fighting for equal political powers and rights (Chimisso, 2003).
Nationalism also affected the minorities as it became a critical political aspect in which everyone in the nations was interested especially in regard to fighting for political rights and powers. As opposed to the traditional way where the minority ethnic groups sought to preserve and keep for themselves their attributes for instance in regard to political, cultural, religious and even linguistic practices they now had the urge to join efforts by coming together so as to fight for their rights and privileges in the nations.
They became aware of the importance of attaining political autonomy and the creation of distinct and independent nation-states and hence they fought for the same although it was not granted immediately since the European integration lessened the opportunity and chances for separate statehood and transfer from one state to another.
However, there have been many parties formed by the minority and they have had a major impact on the territorial organization of sovereign states in Europe especially Western Europe as they have become very strong and successful and their presence cannot be ignored or underemphasized (Musgrave, 2000).
Although the effects of nationalism in Europe seemed to be positive at the beginning of the various revolutions, there were negative impacts that were associated with it and towards the end of the ninetieth century, the ideologies of nationalism seemed to have lost their positive motives and the energies they had in the beginning. Most of the nationalist movements and groups had conflicts and could not tolerate each other and chances of war among them were very high at all times (Anonymous, 2009).
The Changing Roles of the Working Class, Women, and Minorities during this Period
There are notable changes in the roles of different people in the society for instance the minorities, the women and the working class during the period in which nationalism took place and also thereafter as they all became enlightened and were aware of their social, economic and most importantly the political rights and could hence fight for them whenever they were denied through the movements and unions they had established and developed.
The women were rated very low in status and they were discriminated in many aspect of life including cultural, social, and political fields. The role of women towards the end of the eighteenth century to the end of the nineteenth century changed drastically and they became more important and public as opposed to when they were associated only with domestic affairs like marriages, child bearing, and taking care of their husband and family and nothing of public importance.
They also had very limited freedom on matters of political and economic essence as they could also not be involved in economic issues or activities that would generate some income for them or even secure job opportunities in the major fields of the economy in their respective countries. They also had no right to vote or acquire property even after marriage and were liable to beatings from their husbands as they were considered subordinate to them and hence under their control.
Nationalism brought with it some form of independence to the women and their domestic responsibilities changed along with their economic independence. The women could now demand greater political presence to compliment their raised social standards. They could also secure job employment and deal with both the domestic and office responsibilities which were not permitted in earlier centuries.
The role of the minorities including the refugees and the small ethnic groups also changed significantly as they now had a voice in the affairs of the nations as opposed to when their rights were denied and faced discrimination from the majorities. Their power was based on their unity through the groups, movements and parties they formed as a means through which they could demand for their rights.
They now could have voting rights and enjoy other political rights and privileges as they became actively involved in the nation’s activities. The roles of the working class and the men did not change greatly as in the first place they also had political freedom and the only change here was to accept that the minorities and the women had also gained power and freedom.
Implications of the Changing Roles in Different Countries
The changing roles of the women, the minorities and even the working class were not without implications in the different countries or nations where nationalism was experienced. The general implications of the changing roles of different people in the society were attainment of some degree of equality among the men, women and the minority where everybody archived some form of social and political freedom and could therefore not be undermined by the majority in any way.
It also led to increased productivity in the different countries as everyone became actively involved in the activities that led to development in the economic, social and political sectors of the nation. There was also added pressures to the governing forces as they had to incorporate the political changes especially the running of the new formed nation-states into the central structure of the government (Chimisso, 2003).
Reference List
Anonymous (2001). Nationalism. Retrieved from https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/nationalism/
Anonymous (2009). Nationalism in Europe. Web.
Chimisso, C. (2003). Exploring European Identities. New York: Open University Worldwide Ltd.
Leoussi, S.A. (2001). Encyclopedia of Nationalism. London: Transaction Publishers.
Musgrave, D.T. (2000). Self- Determination and National Minorities. New York: Oxford University Press.