Orwell additionally argues that his definition of "nationalism" is not equal to the notion, held by himself and most other people, of "patriotism": "Patriotism is of its nature defensive. Examples of such forms of nationalism given by Orwell include Communism, political Catholicism, Zionism, anti-Semitism, Trotskyism and pacifism. Here, nationalism is defined as alignment to a political entity but can also encompass a religion, race, ideology or any other abstract idea. Nationalism is the name that Orwell gives to the propensity of "identifying oneself with a single nation or other unit, placing it beyond good and evil and recognizing no other duty than that of advancing its interests". Orwell compares Nazism with other forms of nationalistic ideologies to generate an overall argument and questions the function of nationalism. Nazism is used as an example of how nationalism can cause havoc between groups of people and can instigate ignorance within those groups. The essay was written during the final stages of World War II while Europe had just witnessed the destructive effects of political movements. Orwell shows his concern for the social state of Europe and the rest of the world because of the increasing influence of nationalistic sentiment in a large number of countries. Orwell discusses nationalism and argues that it causes people to disregard common sense and to become more ignorant towards facts. ‘Notes on Nationalism’ completed in May 1945 and published in the first issue of the British "Magazine of Philosophy, Psychology, and Aesthetics" Polemic, in October 1945.
Shahr-e Honar is the Iranian publisher of the book. The work which defines various meanings of nationalism has been translated into Persian by Ebrahim Mahjoubi with an afterword by Armin Nasehi.
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