Originally presented as the author's thesis (doctoral)--University of Limerick, Ireland, 2007.

This fascinating book explores the interface between global processes, identity formation and the production of culture. Examining ideas ranging from world systems theory to postmodernism, Jonathan Friedman investigates the relations between the global and the local, to show how cultural fragmentation and modernist homogenization are equally constitutive trends of global reality. With examples taken from a rich variety of theoretical sources, ethnographic accounts of historical eras, the analysis ranges across the cultural formations of ancient Greece, contemporary processes of Hawaiian cultural identification and Congolese beauty cults. Throughout, the author examines the interdependency of world market and local cultural transformations, and demonstrates the complex interrelations between globally structured social processes and the organization of identity. Jonathan Friedman also documents the development and significance of a global perspective in an anthropology that illuminates a wide variety of domains from prehistory to world hegemony. In so doing, he interrogates the emergence of the concept of culture and suggests that anthropology itself is best understood within the trajectory of modernity.

In retrospect, historical change often appears to be both logical and inevitable. Yet, as a process, as a series of moments, it is by nature open-ended. The protagonists are unaware of the potential consequences of their choices, as well as the meaning of their actions in the greater scheme of things. An individual, in real time and in the middle of events, has little scope for understanding the whole. The dynamic of a regime change involves a journey away from a particular past towards a chosen future, while the practices of the old regime are called into question. The competing visions for a better future often include a reactionary option, looking back towards an older period, perceived as a golden age waiting to be restored. In the aftermath of a regime change the new cadres, seeking to consolidate their power, form the new conservative bloc of the society. When revolutionary forces again begin to gather, the regime disintegrates, and the cycle begins again. So far, regime changes have been analysed as unique, one-off events. This book traces what such processes, regardless of their ideological colour, have in common. How does political power change hands? What are the mental and material tools of change? From the last stages of World War I to the present Crimean crisis, the case studies in this book offer timeless insights for understanding ideological and military conflicts, including the undercurrents of the present Russo-Western relations.

There are at least three times as many nations as states in the world today. This book addresses some of the special challenges that arise when two or more national communities re the same (multinational) state. As a work in normative political philosophy its principal aim is to evaluate the political and institutional choices of citizens and governments in states with rival nationalist discourses and nation-building projects. The first chapter takes stock of a decade of intense philosophical and sociological debates about the nature of nations and nationalism. Norman identifies points of consensus in these debates, as well as issues that do not have to be definitively resolved in order to proceed with normative theorizing. He recommends thinking of nationalism as a form of discourse, a way of arguing and mobilizing support, and not primarily as a belief in a principle. A liberal nationalist, then, is someone who uses nationalist arguments, or appeals to nationalist sentiments, in order to rally support for liberal policies. The rest of the book is taken up with the three big political and institutional choices in multinational states. First, what can political actors and governments legitimately do to shape citizens' national identity or identities? This is the core question in the ethics of nation-building, or what Norman calls national engineering. Second, how can minority and majority national communities each be given an adequate degree of self-determination, including equal rights to carry out nation-building projects, within a democratic federal state? Finally, even in a world where most national minorities cannot have their own state, how should the constitutions of multinational federations regulate secessionist politics within the rule of law and the ideals of democracy? More than a decade after Yael Tamir's ground-breaking Liberal Nationalism, Norman finds that these three great practical and institutional questions have still rarely been addressed within a comprehensive normative theory of nationalism.

Author Anne Kane analyzes the intertwined cultural, political and social transformations that occur during historical events by focusing specifically on the case of the Irish Land War, a pivotal event in the formation of the modern Irish nation.

Unmaking Imperial Russia examines Hrushevsky's construction of a new historical paradigm that brought about the nationalization of the Ukrainian past and established Ukrainian history as a separate field of study.

This introduction to contemporary historical theory and practice shows how issues of identity have shaped how we write history. Stefan Berger charts how a new self-reflexivity about what is involved in the process of writing history entered the historical profession and the part that historians have played in debates about the past and its meaningfulness for the present. He introduces key trends in the theory of history such as postmodernism, poststructuralism, constructivism, narrativism and the linguistic turn and reveals, in turn, the ways in which they have transformed how historians have written history over the last four decades. The book ranges widely from more traditional forms of history writing, such as political, social, economic, labour and cultural history, to the emergence of more recent fields, including gender history, historical anthropology, the history of memory, visual history, the history of material culture, and comparative, transnational and global history.

This book presents a collection of essays of how the city-state of Singapore's societal dynamics have evolved from the time of its birth as a nation in 1965 to the present. Key areas of Singapore society are explored, contributing to the understanding of the social organisation of the city. This study reveals a shift from the modernisation studies in the 1970s to a more political-economic turn, as a consequence of the influence of dependency and world systems theories. Topics covered include: urban studies, family, education, medical care, class and social stratification, work, language, ethnic groups, religion and crime and deviance.

Issues of the construction of Self and Other, normally in the context of social exclusion of those perceived as different, have assumed a new urgency. This collection offers a fresh perspective on the ongoing debates on these questions in the social sciences and the humanities by focusing specifically on one theoretical proposition, namely, that the seemingly universal processes of identity formation and exclusion of the 'other' can be differentiated according to three modalities. All contributors directly engage with rigorous empirical testing and theoretical cross-examination of this proposition. Their results have direct implications not only for a more differentiated understanding of collective identities, but also for a better understanding of extreme collective violence and genocide.

History Education is a politically contested subject. It can be used to both promote xenophobia and to develop critical thinking, multiple perspectives, and tolerance. Accordingly, this book critically examines complex issues and constructivist approaches that make history relevant to students’ understanding of the modern world. As such, it has global appeal especially in North and South America, Canada, Europe and Asia. The book’s authors address the major challenges that History Education faces in an era of globalisation, digital revolution and international terror, nationalism and sectarian and religious conflict and warfare. Central to this volume are controversial issues, trauma, and questions of personal and national identity from a wide range of international settings and perspectives. The research in this book was undertaken by leading history educators from every continent. Their interdisciplinary research represents an important contribution to the teaching of social sciences, social psychology, civic education programmes, history and history education in schools, colleges and universities. The book offers new approaches to history educators at all levels. In addition, the chapters offer potential as required reading for students to both develop an international perspective and to compare and contrast their own situations with those that the book covers. Section I considers issues related to identity; how can history education promote social coherence in multicultural societies, in societies divided by sectarianism, or countries adapting to regime changes, whether Communist or Fascist, including, for example, South Africa, previously Communist countries of Eastern Europe, and previous dictatorships in South America and Western Europe. It discusses such questions as: How important is it that students learn the content of history through the processes of historical enquiry? What should that content be and who should decide it, educators or politicians? What is the role of textbooks and who should write and select them? Should history be taught as a discrete discipline or as part of a citizenship or social sciences curriculum? Sections II and III explore ways in which memory of sensitive issues related to the past, to war, or to massacres may be addressed. Are there new methodologies or approaches which make this possible? How can students understand situations involving intolerance and injustice?