Nationhood

Being born in Australia and having British parents allows me the opportunity to connect with both countries sense of nationalism. Although I feel a connection with both countries, I do not feel completely defined by either.  A sense of nationalism or loyalty to where you come from is a feeling which you can have for any country despite where you were geographically born which creates a great sense of freedom.

“In fact all communities larger than primordial villages of face-to-face contact (and perhaps even these) are imagined.” (Anderson, 2006:4). Anderson s reading about imagined communities was interesting but would have been more powerful without the huge amount of historical background. I understand that he had to write about the past in order to get his point across but in my opinion, it made the reading tedious. The fact you don’t personally know everyone in your own country doesn't make the bond for your country any less powerful.

Nationalism is so powerful that people are willing to die in wars for the pride of their country without actually knowing everyone in their country. I always considered nationalism as a notion to celebrate and to feel a sense of pride and love for your community but this can also have negative effects.  For example when our national holiday “Australia Day” was changed to “Citizens Day” in order to not exclude any foreigners from the celebrations, people started to riot.  This illustrates how much nationalism changes over time with the increase of immigration which some Australians perceive as a threat to their culture. As a foreigner in the United Kingdom I believe this idea to be ridiculous as we should all embrace different cultures.

 The way in which Australia is represented in our own country is very different to how we are represented to other countries. When advertising Australia to other countries Australian males tend to be depicted as masculine while Australian women tend to be seen as simply sexual objects. For instance the Fosters adverts where the British males ask questions to the Australian males while the Australian women simply stand there in their swim wear looking pretty.  We seem to be outward looking making constructs about our own nation in comparison to other countries. For example the Paul Hogan advertisement in 1984 to entice Americans to move to Australia was full of stereotypes. They used dissimilisation in order to make it seem like a better way of life. The advert paid special attention to how amazing our weather was in comparison to other countries and even our dialect was over exaggerated with greetings such as “G`day”. Paul Hogan also states “Course we talk the same language although you lot do have a funny accent” which again reinforces the differences between America and Australia.

Nationhood is heavily linked to the media and can reinforce how we see ourselves as a nation. For example even Santa is portrayed differently in Australia. Instead of having the traditional red and white coat and trousers, our Santa wears a white vest top, shorts, and a pair of thongs and is holding a can of beer on the beach. Despite all the stereotypical media surrounding Australia, I’m still very proud to have been born there.

References

Anderson, B. (2006) Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origins and Spread of Nationalism. London: Verso.

CrossMediaOwnership, (28/5/2009) Paul Hogan Ad 1984. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn_CPrCS8gs&hd=1. Accessed 1/4/2014.

Hall, S. (1996) Questions of Cultural Identity. London: Sage.

Yeospec, Good Call! Foster`s TV Ad Leaner ft. Brad and Dan. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4AvLnt3P6Q Accessed 1/4/2014.