Theorizing nationalism /

This reviewer initially felt discontent with the prospect of yet another volume on the saturated theme of national ideologies and nationalism, but the authors here provide a lucid overview and analysis of the theories. Beginning with "classical" sociological theorists such as Weber, Durkheim, Marx, and Parsons, they critically evaluate the absence of theorizing nationalism in these early works. When national identities were in the process of being promoted as the prime focus of collective identification, theorists ignored the potential hegemony and danger. When theoretical shifts occurred in the social sciences during the second half of the 20th century, nationalism became the focus of a number of theorists, such as Anderson, Gellner, Hobsbawm, and Smith. While some viewed national identification as a primordial and essential aspect of modern life, others pointed to the processes that constructed these ideologies along with the emergence of the modern nation-state. UK sociologists Day and Thompson use a variety of international examples, paying ample attention to how gender, race, and ethnicity are connected with nationalism and globalization. The theories analyzed should not be viewed as the monopoly of sociology, because not all the theorists reviewed are trained sociologists. ^BSumming Up: Highly recommended. Undergraduate and graduate students and above in the social sciences and humanities, and the general public. A. Karakasidou Wellesley College