Modern human beings are socialized to take the existence of ethnic and national identities as given and largely unproblematic. Very few individuals would question the apparent normality of this division into nations and ethnic groups however, the intensity of this widespread feeling hides the degree of its historical novelty. This book explores the ideological and institutional underpinnings, as well as the political implications of this powerful modern belief system. This is achieved through subtle theoretical and thorough empirical analysis, both of which draw critically on the leading approaches in the field.

现代人被社会化了，认为民族和国家身份的存在是既定的，基本上没有问题。很少有人会质疑这种国家和民族划分的明显规范性，然而，这种普遍感觉的强度掩盖了其历史上的新颖程度。本书探讨了这一强大的现代信仰体系的意识形态和制度基础，以及其政治含义。这是通过微妙的理论和透彻的经验分析来实现的，这两种分析都批判性地借鉴了该领域的领先方法。