Primordialism In Kenneth Waltz's Man State And War

In Kenneth Waltz’s Man State and War, he argues that “states are motivated to attack each other and to defend themselves by the reason and/or passion of the comparatively few.” Although most focus on the power of these small groups or the logical reasoning, much less attention is paid to the “passion,” where it becomes easy to see how nationalistic sentiments could become influential. John Mearsheimer has paid a great deal of attention to the role of nationalism in state interactions, arguing that the current nation-state system would not exist without nationalism. Although he admits that it is not typically seen a crucial element of realist theory, Mearsheimer agrees that it is a “powerful force” in international relations.
James Mayall connected …show more content…
This was the first approach to the study of nations and nationalism, yet it persists today. Within the approach there are several sub-divisions, debating between whether nationalism occurs because of a proven historical fact or rather a long-standing sense of solidarity. Under the first category, Clifford Geertz argued that nationalism arises from an instinctive cultural attachment. Meanwhile, Pierre Van Den Berghe contends that this attachment was socio-biological, maintained through common descent and horizontal marriage ties. The primordialist approach sees nationalism as continuous and immortal. This is greatly portrayed through the work of Adrian Hastings, who argues for the medieval origin of nationalism in Europe. This approach to the study of nationalism has been routinely criticized, particularly because it takes an emotion rather than rational approach. Scholars have routinely proven the facts of primordialism as either false or only half truths. For example, Patrick Geary, a medieval historian, proved that the ties Hastings wrote about did not actually exist because of constant changes to cultural and political …show more content…
Unlike many prominent scholars of nationalism, Anderson’s major geographical focus of study was not Europe, but Southeast Asia, although his seminal work Imagined Communities addresses all parts of the world. This fundamentally forms how he thought of nationalism, leading him to develop theories that are aligned with the post-colonial world. Anderson’s work focuses on the importance of communication, language, and the media to nationalism, particularly through his term “print capitalism,” which he argued led to the creation of