Gobbet 1: Fichte
Intro
Addresses to the German Nation
Series of lectures in Berlin
Advocates for German nationalism
1806
During French occupation of Prussia & Germany
During Napoleonic Wars between Britain and France
Follows period of revolts and dissent in French Empire
Directly follows dissolution of Holy Roman Empire - Germany a collection of divided states sharing language
Argument:
Language at the heart of national identity and state boundaries
Mixing with those who speak a different language disrupts the state's progression and development
Long Analysis
"Truly natural boundaries of the state"
Pre-empts / alludes to unification of German state
Language as how states first defined themselves before politics
"Long before any human art begins"
Language as something instinctual, passed on by descent, nature not nurture?
"Multitude of invisible bonds by nature herself"
"They belong together and are by nature one and an inseparable whole"
Linked by descent, not location
Citizenship/nation-state identity by jus sanguinis
States first defined by blood, not geography
"Such a whole, if it wishes to absorb and mingle with itself any other people of different descent and language...in the beginning at any rate"
Aim: unite divided German states in the wake of the dissolved HRE and French/Napoleonic occupation
Reference to future construction of Empire - something Germany can come to later in its statehood
"Cannot do so without itself becoming confused"
Perhaps looking at the Revolutionary Wars of French Empire - lots of revolt, dissent and difficulty
German states already divided - adding to this would make things more difficult because they're not linked by blood
"without...violently disturbing the even progress of its culture"
Culture is, however, generally not an even process - formulated through shared experiences, not all of which are positive
Significance
Context for German jus sanguinis citizenship model and harsh citizenship/naturalisation laws
Context for focus on ethnic / descent by blood
Empire
Context for development of German empire out of fractured states sharing language, not location
Context for behaviour in (short) Empire - colonial citizens could not become German by relocating to the metropole, but Germans could remain german whilst in the colonies
Different angle on boundaries and borders in a world of increasingly proliferating physical borders
Risky time to speak out about German national identity
Gobbet 2: Chirac
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Intro