Patriotism

The early decades of 1900s saw the rise of Hollywood patriotic films. Post-Vietnam progressives answered King's call to eschew imperialism but they mistrusted nationalism. Not only will you be able to relate well to others in your shared love for this country but the more individuals who express their patriotic feelings, the stronger our country will be as a whole.

Wherever the construct of the nation as an abstract community sees the loss of the traditional idea of service on behalf of the nation, as a part of humanity, what is left behind is an empty term into which it is possible to project xenophobia and so forth, and thus open the doors to nationalism.

Families gathered together for these celebrations still celebrate in the traditional ways, but there is a sense of pride, a sense of honor, a sense of the recognition that the things we hold dear like freedom, like democracy, like the pursuit of happiness, are not a given, and we just seem to hold those intangible things that define life in America a little more dear.

Sometimes what makes us feel connected is not a love of home and country but a common enemy. The school aims to instill a feeling of national pride and patriotism among the students. The Spanish-American War contributed to sectional reconciliation, as soldiers from all parts of the country served together under the American flag.

Viroli, Maurizio, 1995, For Love of Country: An Essay on Patriotism and Nationalism, Oxford: Oxford University Press. He was a country boy who had joined the army out of a sense of patriotism and adventure. There are negative and positive arguments for both separating and fusing nationalism and patriotism.