State spirit means acting in solidarity with past and future generations

Evidence

Meanwhile “State spirit” presupposes “continuity”, either with the past, or with tradition, or with the future; that is, it presupposes that every act is a moment in a complex process, which has already begun and which will continue. The responsibility for this process, of being actors in this process, of being in solidarity with forces which are materially “unknown” but which nevertheless feel themselves to be active and operational—and of which account is taken, as if they were physically “material” and present—is precisely in certain cases called “State spirit”. It is obvious that such awareness of “duration” must be concrete and not abstract, that is to say in a certain sense must not go beyond certain limits. Let us say that the narrowest limits are a generation back and a generation to come. — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 657

“State spirit” presupposes “continuity”, either with the past, or with tradition, or with the future; that is, it presupposes that every act is a moment in a complex process, which has already begun and which will continue. The responsibility for this process, of being actors in this process, of being in solidarity with forces which are materially “unknown” but which nevertheless feel themselves to be active and operational—and of which account is taken, as if they were physically “material” and present—is precisely in certain cases called “State spirit”. It is obvious that such awareness of “duration” must be concrete and not abstract, that is to say in a certain sense must not go beyond certain limits. Let us say that the narrowest limits are a generation back and a generation to come. — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 657

Categorization

• DEFINE: Establishes the precise meaning of ‘State spirit’ as a felt responsibility for continuing an ongoing process across generations.
• XREF: Connects to Anderson’s imagined community and to how later Islamophobia research treats felt solidarity with unseen co-nationals/fellow believers. — connects to: Party spirit, not individualism, is the foundation of State spirit — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 659; The ritual view of communication maintains society in time through shared beliefs — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 161; Constitutional states depend on founding solidarity that later generations must renew through participation — Jürgen Habermas, A New Structural Transformation of the…, 85
• corroborated: 3 independent passages support this claim — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 657

Broader Connections

• Party spirit, not individualism, is the foundation of State spirit #expands (0.85) — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 659
• The ritual view of communication maintains society in time through shared beliefs #expands (0.85) — James W. Carey, Communication as Culture- Essays on…, 161