No / Can the Balkans ever become a peaceful penisula like that of Scandinavia? With enlightened backing, can it ever make common cause with the rest of Europe rather than being an arena of periodic conflicts, political misrule, and economic misery? In the last years of the twentieth century, Western states watched with alarm as a wave of conflicts swept over much of the Balkans. Ethno-nationalist disputes, often stoked by unprincipled leaders, plunged Yugoslavia into bloody warfare. Romania, Bulgaria and Albania struggled to find stability as they reeled from the collapse of the communist social system and even Greece became embroiled in the Yugoslav tragedy. This new book examines the politics and international relations of the Balkans during a decade of mounting external involvement in its affairs.

Sarajevo’s longstanding image has been one of a functioning multiethnic spatiality where diverse identities harmoniously co-exist and share common public spaces in their everyday life. The ethnically mixed urban population of prewar Sarajevo lived multiethnic spatiality as ‘zajednicki zivot’ (common life). This notion referred to neighborliness, cooperation and trust within and across groups. The structural factors which fostered this condition of neighborly spatiality are assessed through a study of a residential building in central Sarajevo. The thesis argues that the apartment building under study was a concrete manifestation of the ideology and political economy of Tito’s Yugoslavia. It was a space made possible by an authoritarian political system and an economic order subordinated to the interest of the Yugoslav League of Communists. However, the war shattered this world and dispersed the multiethnic spatiality that characterized it. The ensuing disruption of the social, institutional and economic fabric marked the state’s transition from a socialist to a capitalist society. It led to heightened ethnic awareness as well as isolation and alienation that altered the prewar multiethnic spatiality of the city in ways that are still unfolding. / Master of Public and International Affairs

Extant literature on White Nationalism illustrate the myriad of social issues members of this racialist extremist group presently recognize as threatening the continuation of the white race and the preservation of white heritage (Swain 2002). One of these threats includes the high incidences of black-on-white violent crime within the United States. The March 2008 murder of UNC student body president Eve Carson, a 22 year-old white woman, by two young black males elicited heated discussion among White Nationalists. This paper analyzes, via content analysis, the thematic discourse surrounding Carson's homicide among White Nationalists on two popular White Nationalist websites. Functionalist theory guides this investigation in the attempt to illustrate how White Nationalists use scientific theories of criminality and government crime statistics as tools for justifying their racist beliefs. Also, this study intended to answer whether or not Carson's murder prompted an increase in online membership on the two websites used for the analysis. Moreover, this study sought to unearth thematic discourse which involved attacking whites who do not subscribe to White Nationalism; Eve Carson as either a sacred or profane symbol of whiteness; criticism of government policies, media, and the criminal justice system; evoking fear within the White Nationalist community; and calls for white solidarity and action. This analysis suggests that White Nationalists primarily used Carson's death as an opportunity to attack whites who do not subscribe to White Nationalist beliefs. / Master of Science

This thesis engages literature in the field of nationalism in order to explore the discursive construction of a Self-Other relationship in American foreign policy as it has been projected by President George W. Bush between September 11, 2001 and March 19, 2003. Political theorists advance numerous definitions of both the nation and nationalism that offer insight into the Self-Other dichotomy. Despite substantive differences, there is consensus among them that the 'national Self' must be accompanied by the presence and identification of Others who fall beyond political, cultural, and territorial boundaries. Without their presence, there would exist either one nation or none at all. / Master of Arts

Politicians justify border walls by arguing that it would protect the nation from outside threats, such as immigration or terrorism. The literature on border walls has identified xenophobic nationalism's centrality in framing border walls as a security measure. Yet, alternative geographic visions of nationhood in Hungary, Georgia and Israel define the fenced perimeters in these countries as the lines that divide the nation and its territory. These cases illustrate the contradiction between the geography of security, marked by the border wall, and the geography of nationhood, which extends beyond the fenced boundary. These cases allow us to problematize the link between "security" and "nationalism" and their relationship with borders. Therefore, this dissertation is a study of the politics of reconciling distinct geopolitical visions of security and nationhood in the making of border walls. Justification of border walls requires the reframing of the national territory in line with the geography articulated by border security and away from the spatially expanded vision of nationhood. A successful reframing of the nation's geography is a matter of politicians' skills to craft a convincing geopolitical storyline in favor of the border wall that would combine security and nationalist arguments (Hungary). However, even the most skillful rhetoricians will find it hard to create such a discursive story if the hegemonic geography of nationhood has firmly fixed the meaning of the fenced line not as a border but as a dividing line across the nation's geo-body (Georgia). Where such hegemonic geography of nationhood is absent and the society disagrees over the meaning, shape and location of borders and territory, a security discourse in favor of the border wall would sway the public opinion towards that type of territorial conception of nationhood, which overlaps with the promise of protection (Israel). / Doctor of Philosophy / Politicians justify border walls by arguing that it would protect the nation from outside threats, such as immigration or terrorism. This study shows that the new border walls do not necessarily mean the rise of nationalism. Instead, the nationalism associated with border walls has sidelined and replaced other forms of nationalism that aim to keep the border open and expand the state's reach beyond the sovereign boundaries. In Hungary, Georgia and Israel, new border walls serve the purpose of security. Simultaneously, they separate the country from the areas beyond the fenced line but are considered part of the national territory. This study accounts for the political process that aims to reconcile these territorial contradictions between the quest for border security and the nationalist desire to maintain power beyond the border wall. The study has found that such a dual functioning of the borders has been possible in Hungary and Israel. In contrast, in Georgia, the fence remains a deeply negative symbol of the nation's territorial division.

This thesis engages the question of the impact of religion on civic nationalism in the western European context. Civic nationalism, it suggests, is an identarian nationalist construct that is pursued by a liberal state's population through various historical linkages, myth construction, modern outlook, and propaganda. (Smith 2001) (Gellner 1997) The central question is whether civic nationalism, as a method of unifying a population, can compete with the concentrated cultural influence of an equally viable identity construction. Radical Islam is the focus point of this comparison. A powerful religious identity, radical Islam instills in its members a similar sense of unity through belief in core values and utilizes the existence of external threats to reinforce its allegiances. Through this theoretical and empirical exercise, the profound challenge of the civic nation to maintain feelings of unity without inspiring the imagination and mysticism usually inherent in nationalism is investigated. A victim of its own values, the civic nation aspires to harness the unifying force of more negative forms of nationalism without the hateful and exclusive practices usually associated with such group identities while also denying the deep theocratic roots that give nationalism its impermeable quality. The competition of these identarian constructions is empirically examined through a multi-form analysis of reactions to the July 7th, 2005 terrorist bombings of the London transportation system. / Master of Arts

This thesis examines the influence of nationalism on individual identity, focusing on the United States as a case study. It argues that the emergence of nationalism significantly shapes personal identity, impacting individual worldviews and lifeways. Utilizing insights from sociology, philosophy, and religious studies, this paper delves into modern concepts of diversity, secularism, and the social phenomenon of nationalism. The study explores the intersection of nation and religion, suggesting a shift toward individual worldviews and lifeways as a framework that encompasses both religious and secular perspectives to recognize the influence of both in the lives of individuals. Through an analysis of American culture, the paper demonstrates nationalism's role in molding American societal norms and individual identities. Additionally, this research underscores the importance of recognizing the impact of nationalism for navigating the complexities of modern pluralistic societies, contributing to the ongoing cultural conversation by offering an analysis that bridges secular and religious perspectives to offer a holistic understanding of individual and collective meaning-making in the contemporary world.

The purpose of this thesis is to Investigate the relation between mega sport event, media and Korean nationalism in the context of globalisation. Attention is paid to the South Korean media coverage of the 2004 summer Athens Olympic Games. A process/figurational sociological perspective was implemented in making sense of the global-national nexus in the media coverage of the Olympic Games. In this examination, the way In which the media promote the notion of globalisation and reinforce the Idea of nationalism was addressed. The South Korean newspapers and television coverage were investigated In a qualitative manner, and thematic, discourse and visual/image analysis were carried out. Using an inductive thematic coding system, themes and types of media discourse of globalisation and nationalism were identified. The research findings showed that the media coverage of the Olympic Games contains elements of both globalisation and nationalism. While the notions of a global festival and global fraternity were frequently used in celebration of emergence of a global society at the Olympic Games by the media, nationalistic discourses and expressions also accounted for a significant portion of the media coverage of the Olympic Games. It was also found that other notions such as Olympic ideals, war on terror and capitalist ideology were also central elements of the media coverage of the Olympic Games. In addition, the research outcome also points out that a unitary Korean nationalism, which supports reunification of the divided Korea, is becoming a dominant form of discourse on inter-Korean relations within South Korea. Therefore, a unitary Korean nationalism is evident in the South Korean media coverage of the Olympic Games. Overall, the research findings suggest that a media version of the Olympic Games is both a supreme facilitator of globalisation and an ultimate identifier of the nation.

The main purpose of this thesis is to gain insight to, and widened knowledge about, the contemporary nationalistic movement in Sweden, represented by the Sweden Democrats, and its’ relation to cultural heritage. The party has made cultural heritage the main focal of their culture politic, but the questions are what cultural heritage is to them, what content they read in to the concept, how they value heritage, what sort of heritage policies they want to pursue, and why. And also what sort of sources and expertise that are invoked by the party. The source material, consisting of transcripts from parliamentary debates, motions, and policy documents from the party’s web page, is processed through a discourse analytic method. An important theoretical starting point is that to define a term is to define the thing itself, and that this is an expression of power, especially when it comes to a parliamentary party. The second purpose is to problematize and discuss the concept of heritage on a meta level by comparing the results from the empirical study with earlier research that explores the hegemonic heritage discourse. The main findings are that the Sweden Democrats, like many of their peers around Europe, want to use cultural heritage to create unity and a common national identity – a mono culture to replace the multi cultural paradigm they mean is prevailing in the country (and ruining it). The party has an essentialist, even positivistic, view on the content of heritage, but they never really define it thoroughly. The study also shows that most of the party’s thoughts on heritage are in line with the hegemonic heritage discourse. Some have argued that the Sweden Democrats are abusing ”the heritage”, but I would rather say that they are using it, in a way that corresponds well with the concept “cultural heritage” as it has been defined by all those involved with it (i.e. journalists, writers, scholars, policy makers, museal personnel, and the public through public debate in the press). The example of this Swedish nationalistic party, shows what the cultural heritage concept of today can be when driven to its peak. / Uppsatsens första syfte är att nå ökade insikter i modern svensk nationalism (representerad av Sverigedemokraterna) och dess relation till, och syn på, kulturarvsbegreppet. Partiet har gjort kulturarv till sin främsta kulturpolitiska fråga, men frågan är vad kulturarv är för partiet, vilket innehåll de tillskriver det, vilken kulturarvspolitik de säger sig vilja bedriva, hur de värderar kulturarv, och motiverar sina åsikter och förslag. Detta skall utredas genom en diskursanalys av Sverigedemokratiska motioner, riksdagsdebattinlägg, och texter från partiets webbsida. En teoretisk utgångspunkt som är mycket viktig för motiverandet av uppsatsens relevans är att kontroll över kulturarvsbegreppet är kontroll över tinget i sig, och att detta är ett maktuttryck, i synnerhet när det är ett riksdagsparti som söker kontroll över begreppet. Uppsatsens andra syfte är att problematisera och diskutera kulturarvsbegreppet på en metanivå, genom att jämföra resultaten från den empiriska studien med tidigare forskning om den hegemoniska kulturarvsdiskursen. De huvudsakliga fynden är att Sverigedemokraterna, likt många nationalistiska rörelser ute i Europa, vill använda kulturarv för att skapa gemenskap och en gemensam nationell identitet – en monokultur som kan ersätta det multikulturella paradigm de menar är rådande i landet idag. Partiet har en essentialistisk, till och med positivistisk, syn på kulturarv, men definierar det trots det aldrig på djupet. Studien visar att partiets tankar om kulturarvet ofta går i linje med den hegemoniska kulturarvsdiskursen. Somliga har hävdat att Sverigedemokraterna missbrukar ”kulturarvet”, men jag vill snarare säga att de brukar det på ett sätt som korresponderar med kulturarvsbegreppet med stort K, såsom det kommit att tolkas efter år av användande av journalister, författare, akademiker, politiker, museipersonal, och genom publik debatt i pressen. Exemplet Sverigedemokraterna visar vad kulturarvsbegreppet av idag kan vara när det dras till sin spets.

This dissertation concerns the development and interaction of Kazakh and Russian identities in post-Soviet Kazakhstan. My research questions were: (1) what was the character of these identities in 2003/04 (the time of my research); (2) how have these identities interacted to form dominant and subordinate identities, and (3) how can the character of these identities and their interaction be explained? In order to research these questions I used a general questionnaire followed up by open ended interviews of a representative sample of Kazakhstani citizens. While my research findings show continued uncertainty and provisionality in both Kazakh and Russian identities, which confirms the broad trend of previous surveys, they also indicate signs of change in the emergence of more consolidated dominant and subordinate identities in the less Russianised areas like Chimkent and among the younger generation, while by contrast the older generations of Russians, particularly in the more Russianised areas, find it difficult to accept the delegitimation of their dominant status as reflected in the nationalizing policies pursued by the new state. In theoretical terms these findings confirm the importance of the study of ethnic stratification, which has not received sufficient attention in previous research in this area. In explaining these developments I found that the character of the transition and also of the ‘prior regime type’ in Kazakhstan has had a significant effect on ethnic relationships, but also that international factors, such as those presented in Brubaker’s triadic model, and internal factors, elaborated by Schermerhorn and Horowitz, were also important.