For Love of Country: An Essay on Patriotism and Nationalism / Edition 1

by Maurizio Viroli

Overview

Reconstructing the historical meaning of the terms nationalism and patriotism, Viroli shows how the two concepts have been used within specific cultural and ideological contexts. He reviews the political thought of modern and early modern Europe, with particular emphasis on France, Italy, England, and Germany, and comes up with a fundamental difference between patriotism and nationalism. Viroli argues that patriotism and nationalism are two ideologies that aim to reinforce and channel two different and powerful political passions: the love of a common good and the love of uniqueness and homogeneity. The Patriot is a supporter of the republic, his enemies are tyranny and corruption; the Nationalist supports ethnic, cultural, or religious unity, and fights against impurity, contamination, and diversity. He concludes, therefore, that while it is morally acceptable to be a patriot, it is morally unacceptable, as well as unnecessary, to be a nationalist to defend the values that nationalists hold dear. This work will be of interest to students and scholars of political theory and political science, as well as to historians of political thought.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198279525
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	11/09/1995
Pages:	206
Product dimensions:	5.75(w) x 8.75(h) x 0.73(d)

About the Author

Maurizio Viroli is Professor in the Department of Politics at Princeton University. He is the author of From Politics to Reason of State and Jean-Jacques Rousseau and the "Well-Ordered Society".

Table of Contents

Introduction1. The Legacy of Republican Patriotism2. Decline and Revival3. Patriotism and the Politics of the Ancients4. The Birth of the Language of Nationalism5. The Nationalization of PatriotismEpilogue: Patriotism without Nationalism

Editorial Reviews

Excellent [and] very timely. Viroli's proposal to reclaim the language of republican patriotism is not only an important contribution to the discussion around the issue of nationalism. It is also a crucial intervention in the current debate about the need for "community" and "civic virtue." -- Political Studies

Political Studies

"Excellent [and] very timely. Maurizio Viroli's proposal to reclaim the language of republican patriotism is not only an important contribution to the discussion around the issue of nationalism. It is also a crucial intervention in the current debate about the need for 'community' and 'civic virtue.'"— Political Studies

"[Viroli] offers us two essays for the price of one. Two, because in his twofold purpose he manages to produce both a scholarly piece of intellectual history and a forcefully articulated piece of personal conviction."—The Review of Politics

From the Publisher