Croatian Nationalism And The Croatian National Movement (1966-1972) In Anglo-American Publications – A Critical Assessment
Ponukan člankom u Hrvatskom fokusu Pavla Blaževića »Marko, nacionalizam je domoljublje!« (https://www.hrvatski-fokus.hr/index.php/najnovije-vijesti/20948-marko-nacionalizam-je-domoljublje) dr. Ante Čuvalo poslao je svoj vrijedni uradak iz davne 1988. godine na temu nacionalizma i odnosa hrvatskoga nacionalizma i domoljublja u vrijeme druge Jugoslavije na izdisaju. Nadamo se da će ova poduža iznimno vrijedna i poučna analiza, bez obzira što je na engleskom jeziku, pripomoći da se bolje sagleda nužnosti uvedbe institucije »političkih Hrvata« u hrvatski pravni sustav kao jedinoga rješenja svih naših državotvornih problema.
On Nationalism in General
Nationalism is one of the greatest forces in modem history. It seems that no political, economic, psychological, ideological, or any other drive can match its compulsion and its impact on our world. Furthermore, nationalism continues to defy scholarly analysis, prognosis, and even logic itself.1 One of the major reasons for this defiance is that nationalism has a chameleonic nature, has a number of contingencies, and can be expressed in multiple ways. A strong indication of the complexity of the subject is the fact that a good study of nationalism must include a host of interdisciplinary fields, such as history, geography, language, religion, economy, political science, international relations, sociology, literature, ethnography, and art, just to name a few. No wonder, then, that among numerous definitions of nationalism one can not find an adequate one.
Dr. Ante Čuvalo
Although nationalism can be linked to imperialism of one kind or another, most nationalisms strive to gain, maintain or increase a certain national group’s self-awareness, cohesion, individuality and self-rule. Nationalisms, however, differ in their formation, goals, expression, degree of self-consciousness, mobilization, and in a number of other features. Even the same nationalism can be expressed differently and in various degrees of intensity at particular times. Furthermore, different individuals, social elements, and regions of the same nation express their nationalism in distinct ways and measures of passion at different times and situations. Thus, it is very hazardous to bring a generalized judgment about nationalism as a phenomenon, or even about the nationalism of a particular nation.
The purpose of this paper is not to examine nationalism in general, but to explore how the latest surge of Croatian nationalism has been viewed in contemporary Anglo-American publications. Nevertheless, I will mention just a few more difficulties with which a student of nationalism is faced. For example, is nationalism something “primordial” and “irrational”, or is it a historical phenomenon? Is nationalism simply an invention of modem intellectuals and politicians for the purpose of harvesting political legitimacy in the name of the people, or does it go deeper?