The Ethics of Nationalism

Abstract

The Ethics of Nationalism is about the normative limits of nationalism. It assesses three justificatory arguments for the institutional recognition of national identity and argues that they suggest the appropriate limits of national accommodation. There are two kinds of projects associated with nationalism—nation‐building projects and national self‐determination projects—and these are often in tension with one another, at least in practice. The book discusses guidelines for determining when one is more appropriate than the other and the extent to which states can legitimately engage in nation‐building. The discussion of national self‐determination draws not only on the normative arguments for institutional recognition of national identity but also on claims to particular pieces of territory.