The Making of English National Identity

Reviews / Votes

'[What] is it to be English? Krishan Kumar's careful and copious study of this conundrum is a timely one ... Kumar naturally pays much attention to the uneasy equivocality of the word 'English' and its synecdochal use for 'British'. Much of his energy is devoted to rebutting those who have claimed to find versions of English nationalism at various epochs, from medieval times to the eighteenth century.' Financial Times 'Kumar offers an accessible and closely-argued account of alternative explanations of English nationalism. It is a book distinguished both by its conceptual clarity and by the rigour of its argument. The Times Literary Supplement '[A] scholarly masterpiece ... not another quick burst of populist English angst, but the deepest and best reflection so far by a fine socialist and an intellectual historian.' Bernard Crick, The Guardian '... his book will surely make a significant contribution to a number of important contemporary debates concerning questions of Englishness, identity and empire'. Cercles 'Kumar's theorising [is] impressive in its command of the existing literature ...' Spectator 'One of the finest recent books written on this subject is by an American professor of South Indian background. Krishan Kumar's The Making of English National Identity sensitively examines the awakening of English self-awareness ...'. The Independent 'Kumar is a lucid and conscientious expositor of the major accounts of English national identity which have been proposed to date. More important, he is also a penetrating critic of their shortcomings.' Tribune '... an extremely accessible, provocative and original book'. Cercles '... the deepest and best reflection so far by a fine sociologist and an intellectual historian.' The Guardian Review '... lively, stimulating and readable book - undeniably an important contribution to the debate ...'. The Times Higher Education Supplement '... a work that is hugely convincing and comprehensive ... Kumar has written a book which, in its detail, clarity and wide-ranging nature, makes an important contribution to a debate that is of considerable topical importance.' Scottish Affairs '... lucidly written, combining subtlety in its synthesis of an enormous range of sources with careful but definite conclusions ... an instance of historical sociology at its best ...'. Nations & Nationalism 'This is an impeccably scholarly yet remarkably accessible book, which sets out to explain the emergence and peculiarities of that most elusive phenomenon, English nationalism.' Political Studies Review