Numerous cases can be shown of nations that elevate symbols they associate with their own defeat to the centre of their national mythology and construction of history. While this has been recognized and commented upon by scholars examining individual nations, it has yet to be examined in a comparative context as a phenomenon distinct to nationalism and the nation as a modern ideology and social construct. Yet such symbols are sufficiently common in national mythologies, and unusually so in that they can be shown to have been elevated in importance and altered in meaning over the process of nation building, that examination of this particular category of symbols has potential to offer unique insights into "the nation" as a general concept. Nations are modem constructs, yet most identify in continuity with ancient predecessors. The elevation of symbols of defeat serves to negotiate this balance by substantiating the nation's sense of continuity with the traditional ethnic culture on which it relies for its symbolic content, while at the same time rationalising the radical social transformation necessary in order for the community to assert claims in the modern political context. Under certain conditions, such myths can even serve as the very signifiers which give the system its structure and meaning and therefore the effective foundation myths of the nation. As a result, an added desperation, difficult for outsiders to understand, often characterises conflicts over symbols associated with these myths.

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Nationalism is primarily a political principle, which holds that the political and the national unit should be congruent' (Gellner 2006: 128, 1). This thesis argues that this ideal of congruency - a unification of individuals and a congruency of a 'people' with space and authority - has become a leitmotif in our contemporary modes of thought, often rendered concomitant to liberal democracy, security, peace and modernity. Congruent societies, whether defined as 'nation-states' or otherwise, are assumed to be the optimal unit in the 'modern international'. In this thesis, I suggest reading the congruent society as a 'fantasy', a multifaceted discourse that makes our world intelligible by carving it into imagined congruent socio-political units. The congruent society is a fantasy, indeed a fantasmatic project, in that it offers a certain 'fullness to come', the promise of jouissance, that can never be attained and is thus constantly reenvisioned and re-invoked. It is an impossible yet always-desired attempt to mask the void of society, to stabilise the contingency of social life. Furthermore, this thesis offers a genealogical inquiry into the conditions of emergence of the congruent society fantasy from early-modernity to our contemporary regime of congruency. Reading genealogy as a 'history of the present', this thesis problematises and denaturalises our contemporary regime of congruency by interrogating the myriad discursive practices that constitute and legitimate the fantasy of congruency.

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This thesis provides a case study analysis of regionalisation in the wider Black Sea area as a contribution to the study of regionalism. Taking 1992 as the starting point, interviews, official documents and personal observation are used to analyse the integrative processes by focusing on the areas of regional security, institutionalisation, intraregional trade and the role of the EU. Confrontation and cooperation are inter-related, and security imperatives and the lack of a sense of (security) community affect the efficiency level of the regional institutions and prevent increased regional cooperation. Nevertheless, the EU has enhanced a sense of community in the wider Black Sea area (WBSA) although mainly in the western part of it. Previous studies on regionalism have mostly dealt with regionalisms among allies or countries that seem to genuinely interact as partner countries, rather than examining the regionalist project of a group of states including adversaries with political-military problems between themselves. This thesis is thus original in focusing on a strange phenomenon that cooperation is going on at the same time as tension and conflict between states. A further sign of complexity is that many of the instances of cooperation such as economic are going on outside the remit of the regional organisations which have been established – such as the Black Sea Economic Cooperation. As this regional arrangement resembles an example of regional integration but cannot easily be analysed by the customary approaches of regionalism, the idea of ‘complex regionalism’ is proposed to denote the complex interplay among the participating actors in the WBSA. The summary contribution is to show that it is still possible to have regionalisation of states where some of them simultaneously engage in conflicts with each other, although this is likely to stunt the process and the extent of regional integration.

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Tourism like ‘nation’ is a ‘cultural’ concept. In many cases tourism has played a role in the expression of the ‘nation’ and helps solidify the common heritage, cultural kinship, a sense of common identity and belonging. In Scotland, the imagery formed by tourism has helped in the identification of the Scottish nation. This thesis is concerned with the interaction of tourism with the Scottish nation and examines how persistently the touristic heritage of Scotland represents its cultural identity, national image and distinctive characteristics. The main quest was to discover if tourism in Scotland is an expression of nationalism. This was investigated at tourism attractions at three levels - national, regional and personal - with particular reference to the central belt and the southwest region of Scotland. Qualitative research methodology was applied and data were collected through a variety of sources that included a questionnaire survey, interviews, participant observation, field observation and notes, and other unobtrusive and library-based sources. The evidence from this study shows that tourism plays a dominant and meaningful role in the manifestation of Scottish culture and national identity. The findings of this study suggested that the use of images and icons of Scottish cultural heritage in tourism strongly promotes and advances Scottish cultural distinctiveness and identity at all the three levels. At the national level, the presentation of Scottish cultural heritage to tourists in Edinburgh strongly resonates with the ideals of nationalists. At the regional level, the images of Robert the Bruce and Robert Burns in the southwest region in tourism are strong markers of Scottish nationhood. At the personal level, the Scottish heritage of ancestry for genealogical tourists is a strong means to reflect on their identity and cultural roots: for them, touring Scotland is one of the ways to express their ‘national’ feeling and a means to articulate their ‘homeland’ nationalism. These findings reiterated that the touristic heritage of Scotland has elements that closely correspond with the identity of the Scottish nation. Being dominated by heritage attractions, tourism in Scotland is a narrative of its past and the present, through which it mediates the nation, and advances its national sense through recreation, authentication and touristification of its cultural heritage. This study helps us gain a deeper insight into the coherency between the idea of tourism, history, heritage, authenticity, a sense of identity and cultural roots: that can be helpful in understanding the nation from the perspective of tourism. The knowledge from this study can be helpful to the agencies involved in the development and management of tourism and cultural heritage of Scotland.