How has a European identity developed?

I’m rapidly reaching the end of my first module of study with the Open University – entitled Governing Europe.  For the final assignment of this module, we were asked to complete two mini-essays (750 words each), the first of which dealt with the development of a European identity.  This assignment is quoted below:

‘To what extent have conditions encouraging a European identity developed since 1945?’

In answering the above question, we must begin by outlining the key ways in which conditions encouraging a European identity have developed since 1945. We must then outline some of the challenges to the development of a European identity. This essay will then expand on the key ways in which such conditions have developed.

There are four key ways in which conditions encouraging a European identity have developed since 1945. Firstly, the expansion of the European Union has played a key role in the development of a European identity. Secondly, asking European citizens to become involved in the participatory democracy of some European institutions has allowed the idea of a common European identity to grow among individual citizens. Thirdly, the development of the European Union as a force in driving a peaceful Europe has acted as an incentive to Europeans to consider a common identity. Finally, the development of the single market has reduced the economic divide between many European countries. These four factors have acted to create common liberal, democratic and peaceful conditions for European society, and this unity undoubtedly strengthens a European identity.

Before expanding on the conditions which have encouraged the development of a European identity, it is important to give thought to the factors that have challenged that development. There have been three major challenges to such development. Firstly, the continuing exclusion of many European countries from the EU serves as a reminder that future expansion remains likely. This only serves to create continuing uncertainty among European citizens, acting as a considerable challenge to the development of a common identity. For example, the ongoing debate about the viability of Turkish entry to the EU has left wide-ranging debates about the nature of the EU.

Secondly, the continuing development of national and regional identities has increased the focus on European diversity rather than unity. The continuing dialogues regarding regional and national identities serves to prevent a discourse surrounding the development of a European identity from emerging. For example, debates about Welsh and Scottish independence have increased in the UK in recent years, with a rise in strength of nationalistic parties. This has prevented the British Government from developing a debate around European identity, particularly in Wales and Scotland.

Thirdly, the failure to drive unity within the cultural arena has prevented identity development through cultural narrative. An example of this has been the proliferation of the number of official EU languages, such as Irish in recent years. The expansion of the number of official languages, while important in order to secure a buy-in to the European project from national minorities, has served as another block in developing a single European identity unencumbered by such linguistic divides.

However, the development of conditions that enhance a European identity has greatly outweighed the challenges to the development of such an identity outlined above.

Prior to the Treaty of Rome in 1945, European citizens often had limited immediate contact with the citizens of other European countries. This was particularly the case in those countries which lie on the outer geographical margins of the continent. However, the development of the European Union into a grouping of twenty-seven states has substantially increased interaction between the citizens of individual member states. In particular, the development of free movement of labour as a principle of the EU has substantially increased such interaction, contributing greatly to the development of a European identity.

The creation of bodies such as the European Parliament in 1979, comprised of members directly elected by individual EU member states, has served to encourage the participatory involvement of European citizens in the European project. By giving citizens the power to elect members of various political persuasions, the people of Europe have been empowered to exert their own political control over the complexion of a common European identity.

Pre-1945, Europe was a region with a long history of warfare, which had reached a point of real crisis in the early and mid 20th Century. The European project has had the effect of creating a stable and lasting peace in the region. This development has dramatically removed barriers to the development of a common European identity, by removing one of the most significant sources of tension between members of individual member states.

Finally, the development of the single-market as a core component of the EU, has significantly assisted in reducing regional poverty in Europe. The free movement of capital has allowed less prosperous nations such as Ireland to increase in wealth over time, reducing another barrier to the development of a common identity. The reduction of such barriers has been as important as the development of positive conditions in the development of a European identity.

It is clear that there have been challenges to the development of a European identity, as outlined above. However, the four major changes in conditions outlined have vastly outweighed such challenges, and thus facilitated significant progress towards the development of a common identity.