Why do we have so many ethnic partisans in the world ready to die
as suicide bombers? Does a rational calculus lie beneath the
nationalist pride and passions? Can it be discovered if only we
apply our understanding of rationality more creatively? This
article seeks to answer these questions by focusing on the
nationalism of resistance. It argues that a focus on dignity,
self-respect, and
recognition, rather than a straightforward notion of self-interest, is a better prism for understanding ethnic and nationalist behavior, although self-interest is not entirely absent as a motivation in ethnic conflict. In the process of developing this argument, a distinction once made by Max Weber—between instrumental rationality and value rationality—is recovered and refined further.
recognition, rather than a straightforward notion of self-interest, is a better prism for understanding ethnic and nationalist behavior, although self-interest is not entirely absent as a motivation in ethnic conflict. In the process of developing this argument, a distinction once made by Max Weber—between instrumental rationality and value rationality—is recovered and refined further.