Nationality in history and politics

First published in 1944, Nationality in History and Politics unpacks the vagueness of terms such as nationality, national consciousness, national character, national will, national self-determination, etc. The phenomena underlying these terms are exceedingly complex, and writers frequently shift the sense according to the interest defended. National consciousness comprises a number of different aspirations which, however, can be summed up as a striving for national personality. The book investigates in detail the correlations between those aspirations and such factors as race, language, religion, territory and State, and examines in particular the social background of modern nationalism. The chapters give the sociology of national sentiment and national traditions, usually called national character, against a wide historical background. The latter part of the book treats the evolution of ideas on nationality and on supranational aims from the Middle Ages to our own time, and the influence of the doctrines of great thinkers on the national ideology of the principal nations. This book will be of interest to students of history, political science, sociology and psychology.