Collective identities, public spheres, civil society and citizenship in the contemporary era – with some observations on the Israeli scene

Abstract

This paper falls into two sections. In the first certain macro-social changes that have transformed the nature of collective identities in the modern period are considered. In the second, how these have had an impact on Israeli society is considered.

In the contemporary era there have been taking place in Europe – indeed throughout the world – far-reaching changes and transformation of public spheres, civil society and conceptions of citizenship, in close relation to the crystallization of new patterns of collective identity – processes which entail far-reaching transformations of some aspects of what has been envisaged as the ‘classical’ nation-state or the decomposition of some of its components.

These far-reaching changes, decline or transformation of the ideological and institutional premises of the modern nation state developed in a specific historical context. The most important characteristic of this new context was the combination of first, changes in the international systems and shifts of hegemonies within them; second, processes of internal ideological changes in Western societies; third, the development of new processes of globalization; and fourth, far-reaching processes of democratization, of the growing demands of various social sectors for access into the centers of their respective societies, as well as into international arenas.

Keywords:

• nation state
• globalization
• collective identities
• public spheres
• Israeli political system