Heroes, villains and naked nations: micro-solidarity and grounded nationalism in times of crisis

Lea David, Sarah Carol, Siniša Malešević and Gordana Uzelac

EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, 2024, issue Latest articles, 22 pages

Abstract: Figuratively speaking, the COVID-19 pandemic (2019–22) stripped nations naked, exposing the bare structure of how nationalism, as the driving force behind the nation-states, operates on the ground. Based on a survey conducted in April 2021 in five countries (Sweden, Serbia, Germany, Ireland and England), we thematically analyze two open-ended questions on who should be remembered as the heroes and villains of the pandemic, demonstrating that people’s perception of COVID-19 is shaped and reimagined through the category of their own nation-state. Two main arguments are put forward: (1) the vast majority of answers show that heroes and villains are found in small group encounters; (2) yet in-group micro-solidarity is referential to the existing organizational and ideological power of the nation-state. We utilize the notion of “naked nations” to show that, in times of crisis, people’s selfhood is profoundly grounded in micro-solidarity encounters that are tightly linked to nation-states.

Keywords: Grounded nationalism; micro-solidarity; COVID-19; heroes; villains; qualitative research (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:espost:310946

DOI: 10.1080/01419870.2024.2380928

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