Culture, Modernity and media Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Culture, Modernity and media - Essay Example This is because the idea of a nation state or the concept the every human belongs to one or more nations has been very influential in the course of human history. A nationalistic ideology forms the basis of creation for a nation state which determines its friendly or even hostile relationships with other nations of the world. Being a part of nations entails to some extent a positive belief in the ideology of the nation and upholding certain customs which are part of the national culture (Miztal, 2003). Strangely enough, there sometimes appears to be no basis of creating a nation since in historical terms nations were formed simply because a group had a different accent from another, while at the same time, people from across races, religions, cultural and backgrounds as well as those who speak different languages can call themselves part of one nation (Giddens, 1994). This is particularly the case with western democracies like America or Britain, where the diversity of the nation is celebrated as much as the union (Bhaba, 1989). In fact, celebrations are significant in helping to create a national identity and infusing a sense of belonging to a nation without internal discrimination. The celebratory role of a particular incident in history is often connected with war and struggle. Incidentally, the celebration seldom looks at the atrocities committed by the nations involved in the war but rather at the positive, heroic, self sacrificing and noble acts which ‘deserve’ to be commemorated. For instance, the American celebration of Veteran’s Day is a celebration of all the war heroes who fought for America in the many wars the nation has conducted over its comparatively short history (Gillis, 1994). Of course there is little mention of America being the only nation in the world to have ever used a nuclear attack on another nation. The atrocities which were committed by American soldiers in Vietnam and the crimes of war they