Nation Formation : Towards a Theory of Abstract Community

What is a nation and why is nationalism widespread in the world now? This book argues that despite the abundance of writing on the 'nation' and 'nationalism', they are two of the most misunderstood and under-theorized concepts in the contemporary world. Moreover, the strong passions these concepts arouse have obstructed a better understanding of them. Paul Janes argues that the nation is an abstract and contradictory community and guides the reader through the theoretical contributions of key thinkers on the subject, from Marx, Durkheim and Weber to Gellner and Giddens, while placing this work in an historical context. This theoretical survey is illustrated throughout with discussions of recent political crises such as the Bosnian war and the genocide in Rwanda. Nation Formations offers a new way of theorizing through the use of both classical and contemporary approaches. The result is a powerful and accessible book that operates as an overview of key writings in the field and gives a distinctive twist to the debate. It will be required reading on courses in political sociology, political science and social theory.