Construction Of Nation

QUESTION 1 - Do you agree that nation is a modern political and cultural construct? Substantiate your answer by referring to the primordialist approach, modernist and ethno-symbolist theories.

In the beginning, in my opinion, nation is a modern and political concept, if it is not constructed. My understanding of nations modernity is not derived from the idea that ‘there was no nation(s) before the modern times; it just abruptly flourished with it’, like many modernist scholars claimed. The question that, which time that the concept of nation belongs to; is it modern or not? It’s quite hard to answer because of the ambiguous definition and starting date of nation. However, it is necessary to answer for explain my view on nation’s modernity.

This difference is important. Because treating to something as a concept means that considering that thing as it is something abstract and need to be explain. Considering something as a construct can also need to be explain and in social sciences probably be an abstract, but the difference is that construct is cumulative of systematically arranging ideas or terms/concepts; something bigger and complex than a concept; and something made or aforethought by a person. However, in here, primordialist approach, nation is considered as natural, something already a part of our biology. It is not constructed or it is not a concept. It is concrete in our blood that no needs to be explained which nation does or should you belong. Naturalist perspective of primordialist approach restricts the discussion on the age of nation and nationalism by affiliate nation to the birth. Besides, its assertion that the root of nation should be sought in our blood makes the discussion ahistorical and

On the other hand, those who equates it as a political aspect, sees it as a new product of modernism. In my view, nations, national sentiment, national ideology, political or cultural aspect of a nation and all other considerations should take into account in la longue dureé: “the formation of nations needs to be examined in la longue dureé.”

By doing so, and considering different conceptualizations of the terms nation and nationalism, it is obvious to me that nation is a modern political but not cultural construct. National sentiments or national identifications (may be under the name of ethnicity but still close to today’s meaning, without connoting political aspects), can be found, not initially but subsidiarily, even before the modern times. This kind of understanding let me say that nation is a product of nationalism and vice versa.

I did not mention about all primordial, modernist or ethno-symbolist approaches one by one. There are several perspectives and their critiques on nationalism and its age are also various. It is almost impossible to exemplify all those approaches in this work. Therefore I used specific ones which related to my claim, and affirm or contest them according to my