The distance between birth and nationality: The mediation of an ethnocentric imagination

Abstract

In this article I examine how history teaching in Greek elementary school contributes to the construction of a certain "regime of truth". In particular, I examine the internal ideological regime of this discourse; specific narratives and the ways that determine the "authenticity" of the national citizen produce 'truth'. Mostly I am interested in the ideological axiomatic connection of birth with a stable territory such as language and culture, ground and history. In this context, I address certain questions such as: how do narratives or representations in school history create an essential and transcendental connection between 'blood-ground-culture and language'? How is the 'homeland'-asconcept hypostatized on these grounds? How does an ethnocentric imagination attempt to bridge the chasm between natural life and national identity? How is a kind of sovereignty produced through the establishment of a symbolic continuity of the natural and ethical-social world? How does the articulation of sovereignty and democracy correlate with patriotism? In the fist part of the essay I examine how ethnocentric imaginary is developed through history teaching, and how the concepts of 'body' and 'citizenship' are articulated within this framework. Thereupon, I analyze how bodies are constructed through this ethnocentric discourse, mostly drawing examples from history as a school subject. Finally, I examine whether the construction of national identity is compatible with the aims of a democratic pluralistic education. © Common Ground, Yannis Pechtelidis, All Rights Reserved.