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Teacher: Ivana Golac
TEXT 1:What is patriotism?
Ask most American adults today whether they are patriotic, and the answer is a heartfelt yes, regardless of politics.
In fact, 94.5% of Americans think of themselves as at least somewhat patriotic, and 72.2% say they are either very or extremely patriotic, according to a new USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll of 1,009 adults. Only 5% of those polled said they were "not especially patriotic."
But exactly what is patriotism?
"In a general way, patriotism means love of country — love of one's country, one's homeland — a very simple emotional attachment to the place where you're from," says Jack Citrin, professor of political science at the University of California at Berkeley.
"After that, agreement tends to dissolve."
Some people religiously salute the flag; some wrap themselves in the flag — literally. Others burn it and say patriotism is about protest.
"There are various ways people love the country, just as there are various ways people love their spouses or love their friends," says Thomas Cushman, a professor of sociology at Wellesley College.
Patriotism is so complex that academicians have loosely broken it down into categories, although they don't all agree on the labels:
•Devout patriotism. Unconditional loyalty to country. Also called blind patriotism because adherents will support the country no matter what, espousing the ideology, "My country; right or wrong."
•Symbolic patriotism. Attachment to symbols and rituals, such as the flag and patriotic songs.
•Constructive or critical patriotism. Belief that the best way to love one's country is with constructive criticism of the government.
Increasingly these days, disagreement leads to arguments and accusations of others being unpatriotic.
Patriotism "is something that almost everyone thinks is good," says Nolan McCarty, professor of politics and public affairs at Princeton. "So if you can attach your idea to something that is good — Mom, apple pie, patriotism — that's a particularly effective way of selling the idea.
"What's newer and more divisive is that people often take it a step further. Not only do they assert that their idea is patriotic, but they discredit other ideas by suggesting those ideas are not in the best interest of the country."
And regardless of where one sits on the political spectrum, that's troubling, says Jacob Needleman, professor of philosophy at San FranciscoStateUniversity and author of The American Soul.
"The whole essence of American patriotism is that you listen to the other side," he says. "There was a time when people disagreed, but it was understood that they were still loyal to the ideas of this country."
That less-divisive view could return if young people turn out to be less polarized than their parents. Students in Douglas Drummond's government and economics class in Omaha, when asked their ideas of patriotism, expressed many different views, but class discussion was fairly calm.
"The kids are pretty open to other people's opinions," Drummond says. "I think they're coming into what it means to be a patriot."
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TEXT 2:Patriotism versus Nationalism in America
Paul R. Pillar July 5, 2011
Independence Day marks, of course, one of the annual peaks of patriotic expression in the United States. Mixed in with American patriotism is sentiment that is more appropriately labeled nationalism, even though Americans almost never apply that label to themselves. The label is avoided partly because of the more negative connotation of the word nationalism compared to the far more positive associations of patriotism. But the American usage isn't just a matter of semantics. In some other countries the term “nationalist” is willingly accepted. The word is part of the name of major political parties, which have sometimes been the ruling party, in countries such as Taiwan and Bangladesh. The unnamed nationalism that is found in the United States is wrapped up with American exceptionalism. The sentiments involved are not just another flavor of nationalism that one would see in places such as Taiwan and Bangladesh but a specifically American variety that could not arise in those other places. Not recognizing nationalism explicitly is part of what is exceptional in American exceptionalism.As I have addressed earlier, nationalist-driven exceptionalism has several unfortunate effects.
Because nationalism is not the same as patriotism, it behooves us to recognize the difference. George Orwell, in an essay written 66 years ago, offers this perspective:
“Nationalism is not to be confused with patriotism. Both words are normally used in so vague a way that any definition is liable to be challenged, but one must draw a distinction between them, since two different and even opposing ideas are involved. By ‘patriotism’ I mean devotion to a particular place and a particular way of life, which one believes to be the best in the world but has no wish to force on other people. Patriotism is of its nature defensive, both militarily and culturally. Nationalism, on the other hand, is inseparable from the desire for power. The abiding purpose of every nationalist is to secure more power and more prestige,notfor himself but for the nation or other unit in which he has chosen to sink his own individuality.”
Orwell held a broad—and decidedly negative—conception of nationalism, which might involve loyalties to something other than a nation-state. He had his fellow English intelligentsia of the 1940s in mind, but some of what he describes in his essay is easily recognizable in American nationalism of today. This includes not only the pursuit of ever more power but also a self-righteousness and a conviction that one's own way of doing things is superior to everyone else's and is universally applicable. As we engage in the worthy and pleasurable expression of patriotism—“devotion to a particular place and a particular way of life”—not only on the 4th of July but all through the year, let's stick with pure patriotism and, keeping Orwell's distinctions in mind, not let it get confused with our nationalism.
TEXT 3:American Patriotism In 2010
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How patriotic are Americans? The answer is simple and straightforward. Americans love their country and aren’t afraid to say so. Americans would rather live in the U.S. than anywhere else in the world, and they still believe the fundamental structure of our democratic system is sound. But American patriotism is not of the knee-jerk or blind variety. They are vocal in their criticisms, and right now, are deeply dissatisfied and frustrated with the way things are going in the country.
Patriotic attitudes are generally very stable. In a question Gallup asked in January 2001, 87% said they were “extremely” or “very” proud to be American. When Pew repeated the identical question last year, 86% gave that response. In 2001 and 2009, only 1% said they were “not at all proud.” The 9/11 tragedy produced more overt displays of patriotism and heightened sentiment, but responses soon returned to the norm.
When the Pew Research Center asked people last year to agree or disagree with the statement “I am very patriotic,” 54% “completely” agreed with it and another 34% did so “moderately,” for 88% overall agreement In 1987, when Pew asked this question for the first time, 89% agreed. Pew notes that there has been little variation in responses in more than a dozen iterations of the question.
There are some interesting differences among subgroups the population. Young people are less likely than older ones to express strong patriotic sentiment. Patriotism, in other words, may come with age. Black Americans’ attitudes have become more positive about many aspects of society since Barack Obama became president, but there has been little change in the willingness of blacks to express strong patriotism. Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say they are very patriotic.
Pollsters also ask people about the patriotism of their countrymen. In a Pew question from 2010, one-third said they were more patriotic than their fellow citizens, but a clear majority, 59%, said they were about as patriotic. Only 6% considered themselves less so.
Americans’ patriotism is steadfast in part because they believe they have the best system of government in the world. In 2007, during the divisive Iraq war, a pollster asked people about the statement, “Whatever its faults, the United States still has the best system of government in the world.” Eighty-one percent agreed. That response is very similar to the one ABC got when it first asked this question in 1992 (85%).
Americans are very critical today of the performance of many of our central institutions. Two new polls this week show that around two-thirds of Americans are dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country today, and many other surveys reveal deep anxiety. But the fundamental structure seems sound to most people.
In his travels in the United States in the 1830s, Alexis de Tocqueville described America as exceptional, or qualitatively different; the surveys bear this out. In World Values Surveys, Americans are more likely than people in most other countries to say that they are very patriotic, and more people in the U.S. than elsewhere say they prefer to live in their home country.
In 1948 Gallup asked people whether they would live in another country if they were free to do so, and only 3% said they would. In a 2009 Fox News/Opinion Dynamics question, 7% said another country would be a better place to live than the U.S. Ninety percent said the U.S. was the best place to live. Not a bad run.
A 1983 question from The New York Times that hasn’t been repeated since asked people whether you actually have to do something to be patriotic or whether it is enough to love one’s country. One-third said a person had to do something, but two-thirds said it was enough to love one’s country. When asked what kind of acts would be demonstrations of patriotism, large majorities answered voting, joining in the singing of The Star Spangled Banner and serving in the military or on a jury.
After 9/11 around 80% of Americans told pollsters that they flew the flag. A few years later around 60% gave that response. A shock like 9/11 can produce more intense patriotism, but the ordinary everyday variety of American patriotism appears very durable indeed.
Karlyn Bowman, a senior fellow who studies public opinion at the American Enterprise Institute, writes a weekly column for Forbes.
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