Nations and Nationalism in a cosmopolitanized world: some lessons from Ulrich Beck's work

Abstract

This thesis consists of a thorough analysis and subsequent critical review of Ulrich Beck's cosmopolitan proposal. I basically challenge his three main normative assumptions: national secularism, community of risk and cosmopolitan empire. I do so by critically addressing his understanding of nations and nationalism from the perspective of the literature on minority nations. My approach offers a nuanced moral, political and legal understanding of Beck's cosmopolitan view. That is to say, the analytical review aims to highlight both the aspects of his proposal which I consider valuable as well as the aspects that need to be nuanced or criticised in order to strengthen his cosmopolitan account. The contribution of the thesis is to merge the normative cosmopolitan debates with the more accurate understanding of nations and nationalism offered by the literature on minority nations. In addition, it strengthens key aspects of Ulrich Beck’s proposal. The thesis addresses the interaction between the European Court of Human Rights and the United Kingdom as a case study to prove the extent to which Beck's cosmopolitan proposal offers a valid theoretical frame to address transnational challenges such as Human Rights protection.

Doctoretza tesi honetan Ulrich Beck pentsalariaren proposamen kosmopolitaren analisi sakon eta horri dagokion azterketa kritikoa jorratu ditut. Laburbilduz, bere hiru oinarri normatiboak eztabaidatzen ditut: sekularismo nazionala, arrisku komunitatea eta inperio kosmopolita hain zuzen ere. Horretarako estatu gabeko nazioen inguruko literaturan oinarrituz bere lanean agerian geratzen den nazio eta nazionalismoaren ulerpena zalantzan jartzen ditut. Nire gerturapen kritikoak, hala, bere proposamen kosmopolitari ñabardura moral, politiko eta legalak egiten dizkio. Hau da, tesian egindako errepaso analitikoak bere azalpen kosmopolitan agerikoak diren bertuteak azpimarratzeaz gain, hura sendotze arren kritikoki argitu naiz zehaztu beharko liratekeen gabeziak nabarmentzen ditu. Tesiaren ekarpen garrantzitsuena eztabaida kosmopolita nagusiak estatu gabeko nazioen inguruko literaturak nazio eta nazionalismoaren inguruan eskaintzen dituen irakurketa sakonak bateratzea litzateke. Hortaz gain, Ulrich Becken proposameneko elementu zentralak sendotzea du helburu. Azkenik, tesiak Giza Eskubideen Europako Auzitegia eta Erresuma Batuaren arteko interakzioa naiz tentsioak aztertuko ditu, hain zuzen ere Becken proposamen kosmopolitak Giza Eskubideen babesa bezalako erronka transnazionalak bideratzeko balio ote duen frogatzeko.