National Identity and Mental Illness: The Double Helix of Modern Politics

The paper will present the argument that certain forms of mental illness are products of the specific forms of identity associated with nationalism and reflect the secular and egalitarian nature of national identity and national consciousness, which inevitably contribute to the creation of a relatively open, mobile society. The central values of nationalism (equality and popular sovereignty) encourage the individual to define oneself and thereby make such self-definition one's own responsibility. Personal identity-formation becomes problematic as a result, in a significant percentage of cases leading to a disordered sense of self -- the core symptom of these mental illnesses. It will further argue that all major political events in the last several hundred years, including revolutions and great international conflicts, are motivated either by the ideologies reflecting particular collective national identities (group definitions) or, what is far less obvious and less explored, by the mental discomfort (clinical and sub-clinical).