POLI 227 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Ethnic Nationalism, Primordialism, Instrumentalism
4 Feb 2019
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Primordial attachments exist a priori, prior to social interaction and experience. Primordialism is coercive: it imposes itself on the entire group, reinforces homogeneity. Primordial identity is marked by affectivity: the emotional charge that underlies identity. Predicted intensified conflict between different civilizational groupings across the globe. Some of these clashes have come to pass, while others have not. Divisions can be more intense within "civilizations" than between them. Identity is constructed by historical actors both within and outside the given group. Ethnic traits are not inborn or inherent; they are acquired through social interaction. Whether we realize it or not, people are socialized into their identities. Ethnic elites can reinforce ethnic divisions for instrumental reasons. Being something is inclusive of "not being something else" Leaders, both colonial and indigenous, manipulate ethnicity for political power. One of few articles about the developing world in american poli-sci. Each one can constitute a viable support system politically.
