National Pride and the Meaning of ‘Europe’: A Comparative Study of Britain and Spain

Abstract

In this chapter, Pablo Jáuregui questions the idea that the development of the European Union means Europe is entering a ‘post-nationalist’ era. He suggests that nationalism and Europeanism are not necessarily opposed to each other or mutually incompatible. Taking the two cases of Spain and Britain, Jáuregui argues that their specific national self-images and feelings of collective pride have influenced the particular discourses on Europe in those two countries. Drawing in part on the ideas of Norbert Elias, this chapter examines the political rhetoric employed to legitimate or contest the idea of ‘going into Europe‘ in Spain and Britain, paying particular attention to the different ways this decision impacted upon perceptions of national status and sentiments of collective self-esteem. In Britain, the idea of going into Europe was associated with a decline in national status and the ‘loss of world power’. In contrast, for Spain entering Europe meant a considerable enhancement of national prestige following the collapse of a ‘backwards dictatorship’.