Urban Sprawl

             Assignment 3A: The Search for a True Nation-State
             When thinking about Europe and its Multinational States, one usually thinks of the former Yugoslavia and all of the conflict and war that the diversity has caused the region. Despite the problems that a pluralist society has caused for certain states, there are still countries that are very much pluralist and still living in peace unified. An example of these countries is Switzerland. With three official languages, more than three prominent ethnic groups, and two main religions, Switzerland has remained one of the most peaceful countries in Europe, and is honored by the European powers for its neutrality in both World Wars. The very multinational Switzerland is bordered by one of the most pure nation-states all of Europe-France. With a long history of keeping the nation one single unit and promoting cultural unity, France has kept French the only spoken and written language in the country, and also managed to keep the immigration laws extremely strict. Though the unity provides the French a strong sense of who they are, the exclusive state also causes many problems. In this paper, we will take an indepth look at the people of France and Switerland, and describe what kind of a state they are.
             Most of the unity of France roots from the government. The French Republican ideal of equality is opposed to the idea of race which differentiates, classifies and places people in hierarchies. In France, neither the concept of race nor ethnicity are used in common jargon, it's more common to refer to the problem of racism. There is no official keeping of ethnic records in France. Ethnic minorities are referred to as "immigrants", "foreigners", or "French". The concept of race and ethnicity goes back to the Revolution of 1789. The constitution of the Fifth Republic states that: "France is an indivisible, secular, democratic, and social Republic". Si...

More Essays:

APA     MLA     Chicago
Urban Sprawl. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 07:52, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/74007.html