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To what extent do nationalists share similar views about the economy.
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Essay of 3 pages for the course Nationalism at PEARSON (Thorough essay)
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To what extent do nationalists share similar views about the economy?Nationalism in many ways can be described as a chameleon ideology due to the fact it covers
almost the entirety of the political spectrum, meaning that across different strands there is limited
agreement regarding most areas of political thought. However, it can be said that when looking
at the economy whilst some may take different approaches regarding the organisation of the
economy, there is in actual fact much more to unite nationalists than divide. This can be shown
through the fact all nationalists place their nation above other nations, so many are wary of
interdependence with other nations and seek to be independent. Although it can be noted liberal
nationalists disagree with such ideas, so whilst there is more division between liberals and the
rest of nationalism, on the whole there is more agreement than disagreement.
One area of the economy is the idea of the free-market which originates with Smith’s idea of the
invisible hand in allocating resources. This idea is crucial to liberal nationalists who see freedom
as underpinning the basis of the nation, so economic freedom should naturally arise. This can be
shown by the ideas of Rousseau who is the father of liberal nationalism and advocates both
freedom and rationality within a democratic state and sought to overthrow the ideas of both royal
and feudal despotism. Therefore, liberal nationalists advocate capitalism and free-trade between
nation-states. This is due to the fact trade between states serves to create cooperation which can
be seen as a vehicle to create peace. Furthermore, liberal nationalists support supranational
organisations which can help enable trade to occur more effectively. This can be shown by
organisations such as the EU which is a customs union.
However, it can equally be argued that many nationalists are wary of free markets and thus adopt
a different economic system, due to their desire to protect their own nation-state. This idea is
even followed by Rousseau who rejected capitalistic ideas such as divisions of labour due to the
dependency this creates between the rich and poor man, which prevents the general will from
coming to fruition. Instead, Rousseau sought individuals to become economically self-sufficient.
Moreover, conservative nationalists have been seen to take an increasingly protectionist
approach through the use of trade barriers such as tariffs, in order to protect domestic
employment and the populist. For example, Brexit and Trump’s ‘America First’ policies echo
such ideas. Similarly, anti/post-colonial nationalists such as Garvey have gone as far as to
entirely reject capitalism and seek to revive nations which were previously colonised through
socialist ideas. This is due to their desire to end subordination to industrialised states and
Marxism-Leninism can be seen as a vehicle to achieve this and a way to revive common
humanity.
Overall, it can be shown that whilst the extent of support for capitalism differs between
nationalists, particularly when comparing the ideas of liberal and anti/post-colonial nationalists;
however, on the whole all nationalists seek to protect their own nation-state so they want do not
promote an entirely laissez-faire economy.
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