Nationalism first emerged as the Colonists became more and more Democratic. Some argue
             that Democracy had always existed in the colonies, but didn't begin to emerge until around the
             beginning of "The Enlightenment". I believe that Nationalism was present during the
             Revolutionary Era, but then faded again, adding fuel to the fire during the Civil War. Colonists
             exhibited all the aspects of Nationalism. They had a shared sense of cultural identity, a goal of
             political self determination, and the overwhelming majority shared a loyalty to a single national
             Colonists were thousands of miles from the king, the parliament, and Great Britain, this led to
             a new way of life. While many aspects of colonial society were taken directly from that of
             England society, they also formed new beliefs and customs as they saw fit. The
             Enlightenment "Helped produce a growing interest in education and a heightened concern with
             politics and government." (Brinkley pg. 85) With this rise of intellectual curiosity also came
             the rise of literacy and technology within the colonies. The literacy rates rose and more and
             more people had readily avaliable texts. The invention of the printing press led to an influx of
             printed material, much of which delt with politics. Books, pamphlets, and almanacs all were
             used in expressing the political ideas of many of our great early politicians. "One reason the
             Stamp Act created such a furor in the colonies was because printing technology-and thus print
             itself-had by then become central to colonial life.
             The colonies, like any nation, wanted to be self-sufficient, but due to the fixed amount of
             wealth, this was impossible unless they obtained an outside source of income. Mercantilism
             was a essential part of colonial society, the demand for impor
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