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Nationalism

Driving Question: Why do we live in a world of nation-states?

Trace the roots of nationalism, explore how it spread across regions, and analyze the revolutions it inspired, along with the challenges those movements faced. You’ll learn how people expressed national pride, and how revolutionary hopes sometimes ran into roadblocks.

Learning Objectives:

  1. Use evidence to understand the origins and effects of nationalism on human communities and political revolutions.
  2. Use the historical thinking practice of comparison to analyze how nationalism affected different societies and ethnic groups during this era.
STEP 1

Opener: Nationalism

STEP 2

Inventing the Nation

Today, we live in a world of nation-states. Ideas of nationalism underpin our personal and community identities. These materials will help you understand what nationalism is and how it emerged.

Nationalism External link

What does it mean to belong to a nation? In this video, you’ll learn how nationalism developed, how it spread, and how it has shaped the modern world, for better and for worse.

Key Ideas

As this video progresses, key ideas will be introduced to invoke discussion.
STEP 3

Springtime of Nations

The revolutions of 1848 were a flame that spread across Europe—and beyond. In this article, you’ll read about the dozens of countries where revolts erupted, and in the activity that follows, you’ll consider why they failed.

STEP 4

Closer: Nationalism

Extension Materials
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This section brings in voices from the age of nationalism. You'll explore how people in places like Italy, Germany, Haiti, and beyond imagined their nations and took action to turn those ideas into reality.
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Forging Nations

Nationalist movements in Germany and Italy transformed fragmented regions into unified states. Compare the strategies behind unification, from revolution to realpolitik, and reflect on whose actions and perspectives shaped the national story.