George Orwell, a British essayist famous for his book 1984, once wrote that nationalism is parallel with schizophrenia.

However, Orwell makes sure not to confuse nationalism with patriotism. While both terms are often used vaguely, he insists that one must draw a distinction between the two.

Patriotism, in Orwell’s words, is “devotion to a particular place and a particular way of life… but has
no wish to force that on other people… [Patritotism] is of its nature defensive, both militarily and culturally.”

Nationalism, on the other hand, is “inseparable from the desire for power… The abiding purpose of every nationalist is to secure more power and more prestige — not for himself, but for the nation or other unit in which he has chosen to sink his own individuality.”

Is Orwell right to accuse nationalists of being insensible?

To be very pragmatic, nationalism is based on two inane concepts: geographical or land ownership, and citizenry. For most of us, nationality is given not chosen.

Of course, if you could change your nationality many may attempt to do so, but it is not as easy as pointing your index finger. For some, it’s almost impossible. For others, changing nationality could be almost as hard as finding a needle in a haystack.

I am Indonesian because I was born in Indonesia to Indonesian parents. If I were born somewhere else back then, or born to non-Indonesian parents, I might have turned out to be a different story.

Just because the earth is divided via capricious delimitation, with assigned boundaries, aside from those occurring naturally, then a person who is born into such a geographic territory becomes a citizen of that territory, by deduction alone.

Interestingly, one will inevitably gradually become subordinate to their associated country, despite the fact that there’s no valid geopolitical basis for such affinity. Nationality is a happenstance, and yet some people are willing to die in the name of it.

However, nationalism is more than just a schizophrenic syndrome. It is about the relationship of someone to their country, shaped through the dynamic and mutual interactions between the two, underpinning social, cultural and political experiences.

While unjustifiable, just to illustrate, it’s helpful to parallel this relationship with one in an arranged marriage. Two persons who are strangers to one another can eventually live together forever. Some find ways to fall in love; some just keep trying hard to get along until eventually they develop deep caring feelings for each other. Some may end up divorced.

The point is as one citizen realizes they belong to a certain country, they develop feelings, sentiment and concern for that country. This is unavoidable, since most cannot help but continuously be in constant interaction with their country’s systems.

Being born as an Indonesian, speaking Indonesian, eating Indonesian food, interacting with Indonesians, having many Indonesian friends, going to school with other Indonesians, learning about Indonesian history — these experiences of mine are common among most Indonesians. Me and my Indonesian fellows share tons of things in life, and these things aren’t nothing. They are something and they have meaning.

The collective journey through space and time as a member of one nation is a basis for something that’s more than just schizophrenia. This sense of togetherness belongs to the entire community, and is more than just imagined.

It’s actually real: community is more than enough to grow strong bonds and feelings in forms of patriotism or nationalism.

I, and other Indonesians I know, love our country without force. We are patriotic and we express emotion and love for our country, Indonesia.

And yet some of us go beyond this by favoring or striving for unity, independence, interests of an Indonesian nation — such people have become nationalists.

Is there anything wrong with being a nationalist? It depends. There’s a strong tendency to suggest there is. Being a moderate nationalist doesn’t mean you are schizophrenic, but certainly you must fear being one if your nationalism falls into an exaltation of feeling to the detriment of reason, or if you nurture a belief that your nation is superior to others: That’s when you’re trapped in romantic nationalism — a fundamentalist nationalism that sometimes could be delusional.

With my love for my country, one could stamp me as patriotic. Nationalist? I wouldn’t claim to be. I tell everybody loud and clear that I am Indonesian, but I am being very rational in qualifying my country.

I praise and criticize it, when necessary, and while I live far away from the archipelago, I devote my energy and my work to that country, or at least try to.

You can wear batik all day. You can attend flag ceremony and sing “Indonesia Raya”. And you can say Merdeka! on the Indonesian Independence Day. That’s fine. You can buy made-in-Indonesia stuff.

You can work for Indonesian companies, or even the Indonesian government. That’s okay too.

But stay real. Blind nationalism doesn’t do anyone any good. Just like schizophrenia, it does more harm. And one thing to remember; those rituals and rhetoric stay unreal until you transform them into real efforts to participate in the making of a nation-state, and create more opportunities for your own fellows to be engaged in it.

The author is Indonesian professor at Arizona State University in Tempe, USA. She is a Dayeuh Kolot native and a globetrotter who holds an Indonesian passport and enjoys getting into trouble at various immigration desks around the world.

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