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J Ethics (2009) 13:365381
DOI 10.1007/s10892-009-9068-9
Robert Audi
Published online: 17 November 2009 Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009
Abstract A major issue in political philosophy is the extent to which one or another version of nationalism or, by contrast, cosmopolitanism, is morally justied. Nationalism, like cosmopolitanism, may be understood as a position on the status and responsibilities of nation states, but the terms may also be used to designate attitudes appropriate to those positions. One problem in political philosophy is to distinguish and appraise various forms of nationalism and cosmopolitanism; a related problem is how to understand the relation of patriotism to each. Nationalists may tend to be patriots, but need not be; patriots may tend to be nationalists, but need not be. Like nationalism, patriotism may also be considered in propositional forms or in related attitudinal forms; but unlike nationalism and cosmopolitanism, patriotism can exist in the form of an emotion: roughly, love of ones country. This paper characterizes nationalism, cosmopolitanism, and patriotism in both forms and argues for a conception of patriotism on which it is both distinct from nationalism and compatible with certain kinds of cosmopolitanism. It also suggests that, in qualied forms, nationalism and cosmopolitanism may overlap in what they require of their proponents.
Keywords Cosmopolitanism Democracy Globalization Internationalism
Nationalism Patriotism Political obligation Sectarianism Virtue
In one way, we live in a shrinking world. The human population is expanding while important natural resources are being depleted and the environment is being degraded. At the same time, information is rapidly increasing and becoming more
R. Audi (&)
Department of Philosophy, University of Notre Dame, 100 Malloy Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USAe-mail: [email protected]
Nationalism, Patriotism, and Cosmopolitanism in an Age of Globalization
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readily available. Partly through the internet, we are also becoming more and more conscious of what is happening far away. Distances are shorter. International trade and technology transfer are expanding. These and other factors have increased the pressure for industrialization among historically agrarian societies. People in poor nations are increasingly aware of what people in rich nations have. Their aspirations contribute to competition and, potentially, to hostility. International justice is more urgent than everin part because terrorism and war are increasingly dangerous.
Globalization, then, is...