The idea of Nation

In my class last week, we got into a huge discussion about the concept and importance of nation. I have thought about the idea of nationalism quite a bit since I studied music history in college. When I think about how I define myself in terms of culture, I have always thought "I'm an American." What does that really mean? Why is the idea of nationalism so important to us? Why is music so centered around the idea of nation?

The first thing that we must consider is the definition of nationalism and the definition of nation. The best definition that I could find for nation is "a politically organized body of people under a single government." I found 4 different definitions for the term nationalism: 1. patriotism (love of country and willingness to sacrifice for it), 2. the doctrine that your national culture and interests are superior to any other, 3.the aspiration for national independence felt by people under foreign domination) 4. the doctrine that nations should act independently (rather than collectively) to attain their goals.

These definitions left me a little more disturbed than satisfied. I could agree with the above definition of nation. However, if I went into a particular country and tried to characterize certain traits of that nation, I believe we would be at a loss with this definition. For example, I could tell you the different nationalities of Americans and describe our democratic government, but each region of the nation has different qualities and traits that do not necessarily match up. I find the definitions for nationalism particularly unnerving. As a music teacher, I follow the standards set by the national organization MENC which states that all students should know the words to the "Star Spangled Banner." I teach this song and "God Bless America" each year and make sure my students know every word in order to be contributing musical members of our American culture.

However, the more I read into the concept of nationalism, the more weary I become. If a country emphasizes the importance of nationalism too much, this creates moral problems. This belief in nationalism implies that certain characteristics are essential and that each cultural background is already uniquely different. Some call this essentialism. In essence, ethnicity predetermines (speaking musically) what you compose. The concept of nation seems to make no sense logically now. Should we be concerned about the amount of nationalistic values we instill in our children? How far is too far?