The concept of Nationalism and Myth of Cosmopolitanism

The concept of Nationalism and Myth of Cosmopolitanism This week in class we focused on the concept of Nationalism where a collective people strongly identify with the interests of their nation above those of ‘outsiders‘.

The concept of Nationalism and Myth of Cosmopolitanism
The concept of Nationalism and Myth of Cosmopolitanism

Therefore, they are willing to fight/die for those beliefs. We identified that this notion can arguably see as one of the dominant political concepts of our present time, from Trump’s “Make America Great Again” to ‘Brexit’ and other nationalist stances.

In contrast to Nationalism, we talked about Cosmopolitanism and how it suggests that all people are equal and there are no outsiders because we are all one.

Though this is an idealistic view, does it truly reflect the reality of the world in which we live today?

In the NY Times article titled “The Myth of Cosmopolitanism” by Ross Douthat, he argues that true cosmopolitanism is a “rare thing” because it requires people to be comfortable with real the differences and forms of life that are “exotic to one’s own”.

He continues by stating that people who consider themselves to be cosmopolitans, are in contrast transforming differences into similarities by taking what makes things/people unique and homogenizing them.

In addition, Douthat argues that, though cosmopolitans believe they are “global citizens’ devoid of a specific nation or tribe, they are actually a tribe themselves because they have their own distinctive world views, common educational experiences, and shared values.

Therefore, they cannot truly be cosmopolitan because they have separated themselves from the ‘outgroup’ and formed their own tribe. The problem is, cosmopolitans do not see themselves as a tribe, but rather as a group of freethinking people that believe everyone is equal.

My question is: Do you agree with Ross Douthat’s argument that true cosmopolitanism is a myth? Why or why not?

Article Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/03/opinion/sunday/the-myth-of-cosmopolitanism.html

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