by JohnBreuilly (Introduction), ErnestGellner (Author)
First published in 1983, Nations and Nationalism remains one of the most influential explanations of the emergence of nationalism ever written. This updated edition of Ernest Gellner's now-canonical work includes a new introductory essay from John Breuilly, tracing the way the field has evolved over the past two decades, and a bibliography of important work on nationalism since 1983.
Format: Paperback
Pages: 152
Edition: 2
Publisher: Cornell University Press
Published: 15 May 2009
ISBN 10: 0801475007
ISBN 13: 9780801475009
Breuilly's new introduction provides an excellent critical overview of Gellner's writings on nationalism, judiciously evaluating his ideas while also providing insights into their place and continuing significance within the wider historiography of nationalism studies.
--Paul Lawrence, Open UniversityA better explanation than anyone has yet offered of why nationalism is such a prominent principle of political legitimacy today. This is a terse and forceful work... the product of great intellectual energy and an impressive range of knowledge.
--Times Literary SupplementBrilliant, provocative... a great book.
--New StatesmanAn important book... It is a new starting line from which all subsequent discussions of nationalism will have to begin.
--New SocietyPeriodically, an important book emerges that makes us, through the uniqueness of its theory, perceive history as we have not seen it before. Ernest Gellner has written such a volume. Students of nationalism will have to come to grips with his interpretation of the causes for the emergence of nationalism, since he has declared that most of the previous explanations are largely mythical.
--American Historical Review