Nationalism and patriotism are two sides of the same coin but there is a thin line demarcating both the ideologies. Find out here if you are a nationalist or a patriot. Indians are divided on a lot of issues and it’s natural considering the fact that even within a group of four friends there could be four different opinions and India has a population of over 127 crore people.Expecting every citizen of India to be united at all times, agreeing to a rational stand, would be idealistic and impractical. More so because a rational stance on issues cannot be expected from all in the first place. But if there is one emotion that resonates from majority of people living in any country would be the love for their nation. Whether the concept of a ‘nation’ is rational or not is another debate altogether, though.
It is not an unknown fact that an average Indian’s love for his nation is at its peak at two instances, one when Indian is playing a cricket match against Pakistan, and the other when there is a war or an attack on its army. Other than in these two cases, an average Indian hardly thinks about his nation, for he is busy earning a living and trying to win the race he is, fortunately or unfortunately, a part of. With the advent of social media into the lives of people and the immense popularity it has received owing to the fact that now every citizen feels that his voice, his opinion is being heard by at least a few people (or millions) on social media platforms, politicians and the media have also realised that social media is the place to incept ideas into the minds of Indians.
The latest trend in India, post the 2014 General Elections to be precise, is to proclaim the love for India on social media platforms and harassing, both verbally and sometimes physically, all those who seem to have a different opinion when it comes to certain issues the former group assumes is against the national interest. This group, who in the name of being “patriotic”, are not open to any debate or discussion for the betterment of the country, and cannot stand political dissent, confuses patriotism with nationalism. So here is a guide to help you distinguish between a patriot and a nationalist. Once you understand the difference, you can ask yourself, and others, whether they are patriots or nationalists and discuss whether nationalism is good for any country.
Nationalism is an ideology based on the premise that an individual’s loyalty and devotion to one’s country should come above the interests and opinions of other citizens or the interests of a certain group of citizens. The pride of nationalism, however, trumpets its country’s virtues and denies its deficiencies.
Nationalism is contemptuous toward the virtues of other countries. It wants to be and proclaims itself to be “the greatest”. Question to be asked here is – should such self-proclaimed greatness be above rational thinking and goodness? Patriotism is an attachment to a homeland. The love and adoration for the place where an individual is born, brought up, and the nation that place belongs to. These attachments can be related to ethnic, cultural, political or historical. Patriotism is also being proud of a country’s virtues but with an eagerness and readiness to correct its deficiencies to be better. Patriotisn acknowledges the patriotism of citizens of other countries and respects their virtues. It encompasses a set of concepts closely related to those of nationalism.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE, THEN?
An excess of patriotism in the defense of a nation is called chauvinism or jingoism.
The difference between patriotism and nationalism is simple – a patriot loves his country and is proud of it for what it does whereas a nationalist loves his country and is proud of his country NO MATTER WHAT IT DOES.
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