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When Should The Patriot Abandon Their Country?
Merry,Michael Archer,Alfred
Merry,Michael
Archer,Alfred
Abstract
When people feel that their country has betrayed its core ideals, it is natural for them to consider whether they ought finally to give up on their country. Our interest is with those who sincerely love their countries, and yet who are inclined to abandon their country because they judge it to have betrayed its ideals. We consider different variants of patriotism before defending what we call critical patriotism, a stance involving a commitment to a nation's ideals without the attendant need to love one's country unconditionally. We further argue that even in the cases where one has good reasons to remain loyal to one's country, doing so will typically be supererogatory rather than obligatory. The issue before us is of crucial practical significance given the current trend of people feeling justified in abandoning their country in response to feeling that their political ideals have been betrayed.
Description
Date
2025-07
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Research Projects
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Journal Issue
Keywords
patriotism, liberal democracy, injustice, ideals, civic virtue
Citation
Merry, M & Archer, A 2025, 'When Should The Patriot Abandon Their Country?', Public Affairs Quarterly, vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 260-282. https://doi.org/10.5406/21520542.39.3.04