History as a Treasure Chest: Four Principles of Nationalist Historical Narration

Abstract

This essay introduces four principles of nationalist historical narration by using the narrative strategies of the political parties the Sweden Democrats and the Danish People’s Party as examples. These narrative strategies follow the following four principles: 1. Nationalists cannot invent historical narratives solely out of figments of their imaginations. The Sweden Democrats, for example, can use Charles XII as a symbol of national resistance because he existed in real life. 2. Nationalist narratives must resonate, or at least relate, to other traditions of historical narration. This second principle explains why the Danish People’s Party, which operates in a context where the defeatist nationalism characterizes the standard Danish view on history, favors the people instead of kings as heroes of old. 3. A nationalist grammar guides nationalist principles for narration, meaning that a nationalist sentiment as a historical driving force is used whenever possible to show the value of national cohesion in the face of the threats posed by multiculturalism. 4. Ideas from previous generations of cultural nationalists can return to contemporary imagination, as is the case when the parties honor earlier generations of nationalists and their deeds in celebrating the nation and its history.