Answer:
Generations of observers in political and diplomacy studies have been puzzled with the link between nationalism and Globalization. The arguments on the topic are as debatable as they are inconclusive. The essay singles to two different approaches to address the topic: one that views nationalism and nations as losers of historical time, a long surpassed stage in mankind’s development which would soon disappear to make space for new structures which are suited better for increasing the global interconnectedness of the world. The other approach considers nationalism to be the most enduring and potent political force which is perpetual and will only be strengthened with the spread of globalization.
The question boils down to a simple conjecture: does globalization in the contemporary world weaken nationalism, or does it strengthen the nationalist ethos with the aid of extended networks and mass reach out? The development of new media and the growth of technology have made it almost impossible to stay hidden within a nation’s boundaries. Companies use this accessibility to share everything with the world to secure a foothold and initiate expansion to foreign networks. Several national icons have gained the status of international icons due to the demand of their products in foreign countries; Mickey Mouse and Hello Kitty are notable examples. People are bound to imbibe in the flavors of multiculturalism with the expansion of the companies’ networks through media centers and marketing. Universal multimedia like Youtube as given people the opportunity to extend their horizons and knowledge of other cultures, of people who are more privileged or unfortunate. Globalization makes it easier for people to reach out and communicate with each other across the globe. As individual worlds expand with the knowledge of other worlds, the concept of nation becomes elusive, since people are getting to know that they have more in common than differences. The understanding of and the empathy towards other cultures therefore weakens the idea of nationalism. The contemporary world with the extensive reach of globalization makes it difficult for nationalism to survive.
Globalization eliminates the barriers to communication, trade, cultural exchanges. It is because of globalization that the world is remarkably different from what it used to be in earlier days (Conversi, 2014). The world has becomes DE territorialized with the advances in communications and technology. Some experts are of the opinion that globalization tends is responsible for destroying the culture and heritage of different ethnic and indigenous communications in the world. Globalization for them is a nightmare that will continue to destroy generations of ethnicity and indigenous cultures. Some impacts that Globalization has on people of particular nations can be observed in specific examples: eating at McDonalds, wearing Adidas clothes, drinking Starbucks and watching television series of the western world have become dominant attributes of regular life in Asian countries (Croucher, 2018). These examples are a concrete representation of the cultural dominion of the West over the West and it has been earlier noted in diplomatic studies that cultural imperialism is one of the dominant political forces of the west, a crucial weapon they used for colonization in the past.
According to Evans “Products and ideas developed in rich countries shape the value and ideas of citizens of poor countries”. Some national groups have felt compelled to fight globalization and its towering influence on nationalism due to this dominance. Robertson has elaborated the concept of globalization as a world that is compressed into a single consciousness with interdependent nations that have blurred the boundaries of cultural differences and eliminated individual identities (Roberts et al., 2014). In other words, the world has shrunk down to one place and all the localities are connected to each other in one way or the other. Globalization is also identified as the amplification of social relations worldwide linking the distant localities in a way that local incidents are influenced and shaped by the dealings occurring in far-away lands and vice-versa. Since everything is interconnected and inextricably linked to each other it is difficult to not to be a part of it. Globalization compresses time and space and that ways this worlds has undergone changes it has transformed economic, political and social interactions/ relations into a more intensive and faster process generating inter-regional and transcontinental flows of activity (Halikiopoulou and Vasilopoulou,. 2013).
In broader terms nationalism is sentiments of attachment or a feeling of belonging that people of a country harbor towards a nation. It refers to the sense of pride a nation is entitled to have in itself. What can be asserted is the fact that nationalism is an international ideology in itself, which is used intensively for defending and promoting particular cultures and specific ways of life. An instance of nationalism is when a person moves countries, relocates in a foreign land and continues to support the sports team of home country, checking up on the news and current affairs back home. In a more political context, nationalism is the foundation of social solidarity and modern society. Politicians use it for promoting patriotism and national identity. The states proclaim nationalism as the primary goal that aims to further the interest of civilians in war or peace (Starrs, 2013).
As stated earlier, the relationship between globalization and nationalism can be addressed with two different approaches. The first argument declares that the influence of globalization diminishes the feeling of nationalism while the other opinion maintains that both share a mixed relationship in which one promotes and leads to the other. Pertaining to the former argument, many scholars have opined that globalization is merely nationalism’s anti-thesis and since there is only one globe it would not be wrong to assert that boundaries are imaginary (Malesevic, 2013). Since the world is simultaneously expanding and shrinking, falling apart and getting closer, the significance of nationalism is gradually diminishing and the importance of national borders are becoming increasingly irrelevant. Globalization has therefore robbed the power of nationalism to unite the people of a country in terms of nationality, culture and origin. Hobsbawn’s view is that nationalism has passed its zenith and its power, relevance and strength is not what of what it used to be back in the 19th century. The national borders were clearly demarcated in the past, fostering a sense of nationality among the people. But the current world has made everything integrated and fast, to the extent that it is nearly impossible to identify people by their nationality. From the cultural perspective as well, the world has far shifted from national, indigenous to mixed cultures throughout the globe, which has resulted in a global, homogenized culture and diminished the spirit of nationalism (Rai, 2013). As the global community has developed over age, through technologies, interdependence and media production defies nationalist thinking. globalization therefore imposes several threats on nationalism beginning from the loss of segments of the sovereignty of the state, the involvement of foreign diplomacy in the internal affairs of nations, to easy mobility and advanced technologies. The growing rate of immigration every year, globalization imposes security challenges and risk nationalism. From the perspective of tradition and culture (Pieterse, 2014) when a group of people immigrates to a foreign country, they will not only change the social structure but also affect the demographics of the country which results in a downfall in the sense of nationality of the local people.
Contradicting both the arguments a little, connecting globalization with nationalism is an oxymoron. While globalization encourages countries to open up borders for commerce and trade, with more than one country, nationalism seeks to establish the superiority of one country over the other. International relations no longer makes the country or the state the sole player. The non-state entities like NGOs. MNCs, decision-makers and stakeholders are rising both in number and power, calling their shots in domestic front and public policy, aiming to make their own version of a nation. Nationalism therefore gets multilayered and filtered into newer forms without being restricted to a singular one. The impact of democracy on democratic rules has been a topic of extensive discussion among scholars. Some argue that globalization attacks democracy, since globalization has never been a democratic choice over the past few decades. The arguments indicate that globalization has been a tool serving the elite, at the cost of the underprivileged, and it has weakened national democracy stealthily.
Conclusion
The paper has attempted to bring together the chief arguments underpinning the impacts of globalization on the nationalist spirit of individual countries, and as the discussion suggests, globalization through the ages have systematically diminished the importance and significance of nationalism. While globalization has helped people extend their horizons and companies expand the scope of their business, it came with a price. Globalization has deeply affected the diplomatic practices of nations and eradicated, to a great extent, the idea of states, the culture it represents and the traditions they are associated with. Scholars have anticipated the momentum that globalization will gain in the following years; it is also indicative of the fact that more nations will join in the collective happenstances of the global proceedings in the world.
References
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Roberts, J. T., Hite, A. B., & Chorev, N. (Eds.). (2014). The globalization and development reader: Perspectives on development and global change. John Wiley & Sons.
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Halikiopoulou, D., & Vasilopoulou, S. (Eds.). (2013). Nationalism and globalisation: conflicting or complementary?. Routledge.
Croucher, S. (2018). Globalization and belonging: The politics of identity in a changing world. Rowman & Littlefield.
Conversi, D. (2014). Between the hammer of globalization and the anvil of nationalism: Is Europe's complex diversity under threat?. Ethnicities, 14(1), 25-49.
Starrs, R. (2013). Asian Nationalism in an Age of Globalization. Routledge.
