The Making of English National IdentityWhy is English national identity so enigmatic and so elusive? Why, unlike the Scots, Welsh, Irish and most of continental Europe, do the English find it so difficult to say who they are? The Making of English National Identity, first published in 2003, is a fascinating exploration of Englishness and what it means to be English. Drawing on historical, sociological and literary theory, Krishan Kumar examines the rise of English nationalism and issues of race and ethnicity from earliest times to the present day. He argues that the long history of the English as an imperial people has, as with other imperial people like the Russians and the Austrians, developed a sense of missionary nationalism which in the interests of unity and empire has necessitated the repression of ordinary expressions of nationalism. Professor Kumar's lively and provocative approach challenges readers to reconsider their pre-conceptions about national identity and who the English really are. |
Contents
When was England? | |
The first English Empire | |
parent of nationalism? | |
The making of British identity | |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
Anglo-Norman Anglo-Saxon argued aristocracy Bernard Crick Britain British Empire British history British identity British Isles British nation Britons Cambridge University Press Catholic Celtic character Church Civil claims Colley colonial common conquest culture David distinction dominant eighteenth century England English Civil War English identity English kings English national identity Englishman ethnic Europe European expression France French French Revolution German Gillingham Greenfeld groups hardback 0 521 Henry historians idea ideology imperial increasingly independent Ireland Irish John Kidd Kohn Labour language Liah Greenfeld liberal literature London medieval modern monarchy Nairn national consciousness nationalist nationhood nineteenth century Norman Northern Ireland Oxford University Press Parliament patriotism period Pocock popular Protestant Protestantism R. R. Davies Reformation religion religious Revolution Roman Saxons says Scotland Scots Scottish seen sense seventeenth century sixteenth century social society Tom Nairn tradition Tudor Ulster Union United Kingdom Wales Welsh Whig William York