SAMPLE DIALOGUE SIX

Topic: Why Be Patriotic? An exploratory dialogue about patriotism in the “New” America.

Goal or Objective: To examine what it means to be patriotic after 9/11 and whether or not citizens owe anything to their country.

Day, Date, Time, Duration: (approximately 1.5-2 hours)

Location:

Format:

Participants:

Other invited guests/experts: None

Press/Public Relations:

Agenda:

Introduction
In the wake of September 11, 2001 there has been a remarkable surge in pro-American sentiments. Flags hang from many offices, homes, and cars and the media has been flooded with stories celebrating American government, foreign policies, and wartime efforts. Everyone from politicians to next-door neighbors are loudly proclaiming their patriotism, but all seem to have a different definition of it and apply it in different ways. An AmeriCorps volunteer feels patriotic because he is teaching inner-city children how to read, while a soldier feels patriotic because he is serving in the Middle East.

This conversation seeks to find out how college students define patriotism at this point in time and whether or not students think it is an important value to possess.

PAIR ACTIVITY

To get the conversation going, have the group read the following quotes about patriotism, then split them up into pairs to develop their own definitions of patriotism.

Statements About Patriotism: (click here a pdf version for printing)

“... patriotism cannot go back to an innocent time before the murderous excesses of twentieth-century nationalism.” -Jean Bethke Elshtain, professor at University of Chicago

“Patriotism having become one of our topics, Johnson suddenly uttered, in a strong determined tone, an apophthegm, at which many will start: “Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.” But let it be considered that he did not mean a real and generous love of our country, but that pretended patriotism which so many, in all ages and countries, have made a cloak of self-interest.” -Samuel Johnson, English author, scholar, and literary critic

“Patriotism is proud of a country’s virtues and eager to correct its deficiencies; it also acknowledges the legitimate patriotism of other countries, with their own specific virtues. The pride of nationalism, however, trumpets its country’s virtues and denies its deficiencies, while it is contemptuous toward the virtues of other countries. It wants to be, and proclaims itself to be, “the greatest,” but greatness is not required of a country; only goodness is.” -Sydney J. Harris, British-born U.S. journalist and reviewer

“Patriotism is a lively sense of collective responsibility.” -Richard Adlington, British author

“Religion, morality, and patriotism are feelings that are manifested only when they are outraged.” -Karl Kraus, Austrian writer

“What do we mean by patriotism in the context of our times? I venture to suggest that what we mean is a sense of national responsibility ... a patriotism which is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion, but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime.”- Adlai Stevenson, American statesman

“It becomes clear at once that patriotism undoubtedly belongs to the positive realm. The very word says as much: love of fatherland. Or is that perhaps giving too lofty an appraisal of the concept in the course of translating it? If the characteristic of true love is that it gives more than it asks, then the good patriot should examine his own sentiment. An inborn attachment to what is one’s own does not of itself deserve the name of love. If the state is at peace and is as well-governed as a human community can be, then the citizen’s loyalty to his country, his services to it in the forms of energy, devotion, and funds, in general coincide with his own vital interests. The fatherland repays his loyalty by giving him safety, justice, and sometimes even freedom. In fulfilling his patriotic duties he is not performing an act of love. Only when the fatherland is in danger does his giving become a sacrifice, his serving a suffering, his loyalty a love.” -Johan Huizinga, Dutch historian

“Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first; nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first.” -Charles De Gaulle, French general and president

“I do not mean to exclude altogether the idea of patriotism. I know it exists, and I know it has done much in the present contest. But I will venture to assert, that a great and lasting war can never be supported on this principle alone. It must be aided by a prospect of interest, or some reward.” -George Washington, first president of the U.S.

“You'll never have a quiet world til you knock the patriotism out of the human race.” George Bernard Shaw, Anglo-Irish playwright

“Any relation to the land, the habit of tilling it, or mining it, or even hunting on it, generates the feeling of patriotism. He who keeps shop on it, or he who merely uses it as a support to his desk and ledger, or to his manufactory, values it less.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson, U.S. writer

“The world is a fine place. The only thing wrong with it is us. How little justice and humility there is in us, how poorly we understand patriotism!” -Anton Chekhov, Russian author

“‘My country, right or wrong’ is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying ‘My mother, drunk or sober’”. -Gilbert Keith Chesterton, British author

“How much longer are we going to think it necessary to be ‘American’ before (or in contradistinction to) being cultivated, being enlightened, being humane, & having the same intellectual discipline as other civilized countries? It is really too easy a disguise for our shortcomings to dress them up as a form of patriotism!” -Edith Wharton, U.S. author

“What is Americanism? Every one has a different answer. Some people say it is never to submit to the dictation of a King. Others say Americanism is the pride of liberty and the defense of an insult to the flag with their gore. When some half-developed person tramples on that flag, we should be ready to pour out the blood of the nation, they say. But do we not sit in silence when that flag waves over living conditions which should be an insult to all patriotism?”- Anne Howard Shaw, U.S. minister, suffragette, and speaker

When the pairs seem ready bring the group back together to share their definitions. Write them all on a blackboard or easel, then try to get the group to synthesize them into one definition, even if it is long and wordy.


SMALL GROUP ACTIVITY- ARE YOU PATRIOTIC?

After a consensus is reached, have the group break into small groups of 5 to discuss the following questions:

- Are you patriotic? Why or why not?
- What sort of patriotic behaviors do you see around you on campus?
- Should college students be patriotic? Should all citizens be patriotic?
- Does the country need patriotism?

LARGE GROUP ACTIVITY

Bring the small groups back together to discuss briefly what they discovered. Mention that as part of President Bush’s “Call to Service” he has asked Americans to donate 4,000 hours (two years) of community service over their lifetime because “America needs men and women who respond to the call of duty, who stand up for the weak, who speak up for their beliefs, who sacrifice for a greater good”(OSU commencement address 2002). As a capstone to the dialogue have the whole group discuss the following questions:

-Do you owe anything to your country? If so, what?
-Do you identify with the “Call to Service”, military service, or another form of national service?
-Do you see a connection between patriotism and service?

Action

Based upon the information and understanding developed through this dialogue, work with the student newspaper to initiate a “Patriots in Action” series focusing on the work of different students and alumni that underscores the many different understandings of the word “patriot”.