The Role Of National Loyalty In Nationalism

The role of loyalty in nationalism is very important for Anticolonial movements. National loyalty of the people helped the nation to maintain its autonomy. The sentiments of the people during the time of threats led the people of that nation to heroic levels by ensuring its survival. Smith discussed that loyalty to the nation overrides all other loyalties. Everyone loves his identity, culture people and everything that belong to them, so whenever a country attacked and seized by other country or nation, that nation always tried to get their independence back one day. The concept of national loyalty is intertwined with sacrifice because sometimes nationalism demands sacrifices and heroic action from its members. As in my case Shamsie had treated

All of the characters belonging to Peshawar showed that their national loyalties lied with their own nation. The people of Peshawar were struggling against British for their independent homeland. During the Anticolonial protest the people sacrificed their lives for their loyalty to the nation. The British opened fire over unarmed peaceful protestants at the day of 23 April 1930. Qayyum at the first glance was shown as a soldier and his loyalties were his army brothers the “40th Pathans”. He lost his one eye during the battle and was sent back to Peshawar. In his thoughts he betrayed his army brothers and was ashamed of it in his thinking he said “these were not Qayyum’s people, 40thPthans were” (p. 127). After that Kalam suggested him to join Haji Sahib in his mission of “jihad” but he refused. Then he later found out that Kalam was murdered by his cousin but Kalam’s father said him to join Ghaffar Khan in his mission of reformation of Pathans. After that he became active member of “Khudai Khidmatgar” and his army loyalty was overridden with his national loyalty. At that time nationalism motivates the people to high levels and demands heroic action from the nationals. The loyalty could be depicted from the words of Shamsie she said “if a man is to die defending a field, let the field be his field, the land his land, the people his people” (p. 69). Najeeb was loyal to his people, he told Viv with proud about Peshawar and its people. He was somewhat different from others, he was inspired by his English teacher and was away from resistance politics but on 23rd April 1930, when the English army opened fire on non-violent protesters, he engaged himself with the “Khudai Khidmatgars” and struggled for the independence because nationalism is far above than all other