Earnest Gellner's View On Nationalism

The idea of nationalism is an idea that dates back to the earliest existence of human civilization. Nationalism, as defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is “a desire by a large group of people (such as people who share the same culture, history, language) to form a separate and independent nation of their own” (“Nationalism”). Although, based on this definition of nationalism, this concept seems straight forward, there are lots of differing ideas about the concept of nationalism. Earnest Renan’s view on nationalism is a positive one that believes nationalism is the expression of a common principle shared by a group of people. Earnest Gellner takes a slightly more critical view and says that nationalism creates nations where they do not
As seen with the rise of sports in Iran, the rise of the importance of hygiene was facilitated by the pro modernist movement in Iran. During this time the corruption of gender roles was not taken lightly, which caused the rise of this so called “beauty culture” to have a slow start. However, also during this time it became harder and harder for the Iranian state to censor information coming from the west, and as a result of this, “beauty culture” became more and more visible in the Iranian press. Soon pages of magazine were filled with advice in how young people should act and how they should appear (Amin 84). For example, in a photograph taken in 1963, a young teenage Iranian girl is seen dressed in very luxurious clothes with makeup on and posing in a very lucrative manner for the time (Clarke); the picture could be viewed in the popular magazine, Vogue, which highlights women’s beauty. Within a few decades’ urban middle class women were expected more often to be beautiful and fashionable in addition to be healthy (Amin 85). As this “beauty culture” grew and began to encompass the majority of the Iranian people, it became a common principle that was shared by large group of people. The importance placed on
Football was first introduced into Iran by the west. This occurred either a result of Iranians returning to Iran after traveling in Europe or by Europeans living in Iran. By whatever means it was introduced into Iran it soon became institutionalized in “missionary schools, the military, and the oil industry” (Chehabi 376). This institutionalization caused the people of Iran to adopt the sport. This general adoption of this new sport created a sense of nationalism in which the people of Iran all accepted this new found sport of soccer. This sense of nationalism through soccer strengthened over time, first starting with ruling of Reza Shah. Under Reza Shah’s rule, until about the 1930s, western sports such as soccer remained largely a sport only enjoyed by the rich and elite. However, Reza Shah ordered that regular athletic competitions be held. This nationalism rooted behind soccer was expanded further during the rule of Muhammad Reza Shah. Under his rule, the National Football Federation was established. Soon after its establishment, the National Football Federation joined the global federation known as FIFA. This creation of a National Football Federation helps to demonstrate the idea of nationalism because it shows a common principle, soccer, that a large group of people, Iranians, share. Also during this time period, soccer becomes