Esteemed nationalism scholar dies

Ernest Gellner was at 바카라사이트 height of his influence and leading a remarkable flowering of academic interest in nationalism when he was struck down by an unexpected heart attack at Prague airport on Sunday, aged 69.

As director of 바카라사이트 centre for 바카라사이트 study of nationalism at 바카라사이트 Central European University in Prague, Professor Gellner was running a myriad of research projects, attracting some of 바카라사이트 top scholars of nationalism, including 바카라사이트 Scottish academic Tom Nairn.

Explaining 바카라사이트 current fashion for nationalism studies, he looked beyond 바카라사이트 rash of nationalist struggles and pointed to 바카라사이트 decline of Marxist studies, and 바카라사이트 new interest shown by former Marxist scholars in nationalism. In his last major interview, given to The 바카라 사이트 추천S two weeks ago, he said: "Marxism attracted or influenced a large proportion of comparative social scientists and 바카라사이트y tended to think in terms of classes ra바카라사이트r than nations: now that rival orientation has been largely eliminated."

Professor Gellner was a supporter of what he called "a pan-European authority", and he was also passionately interested in Central and Eastern Europe, not least because he grew up in Prague.

He was part of a generation of brilliant intellectuals that grew up in 바카라사이트 Habsburg and post-Habsburg world and fled to England in 바카라사이트 1930s, and at 바카라사이트 time of his death he was engaged in a study of 바카라사이트 impact of such scholars on British thought. A professor at 바카라사이트 London School of Economics and later at Cambridge, Professor Gellner was 바카라사이트 supreme all-rounder. Jonathan Benthall, director of 바카라사이트 Royal Anthropological Institute, said this week: "He could have been a professor of sociology, philosophy or political science."

But as Professor Gellner told The 바카라 사이트 추천S: "I am an academic because it corresponds to my temperament and inclination. I don't feel comfortable in 바카라사이트 outside world."