The culture of every social group – as opposed to the total culture of mankind"- is particular. The most specific form of this particularity in the modern age is nationalism. Paradoxically, despite of the plurality of the nation-states, they tend to become more and more alike: they operate according to uniform, universal rules. As a protest against this formal control, an organised and an anarchic variant of cultural resistance has emerged.

According to the author's prognosis, by the end of the century, the two ruling formations of our age: the nation and the mass party will decline. World economic relations prove to be stronger than the national/ national economic integration. The left wing has to respond to the changed situation with a new strategy: In contrast to a „market Europe", a cultural identity and political forms that are above the nations have to be established.

Discussing the background of ethnic conflicts that is to be found in uneven cultural development, the author analyses Romania's economic path and possibilities. He discusses the economic causes of the Roumanian-Hungarian conflicts and thinks that Transylvanian Hungarians could play a key role in the rise of Romania.

The domestic public consciousness can be characterised with such measure of idealisation of capitalism, which can hardly be found even in the conservative circles of the Anglo-Saxon world. Eventually this is a continuation of the wrong traditions of Stalinist formation of public opinion: the criticism of one existing society is based on the apology of another existing system. The ground for manipulation that threatens the future of the society is given by the lack of knowledge, what can be decreased by studying also a significant part of the progressive western economic, sociological and politological literature.

The authors start out from the national feeling in their line of thought. They discuss issues related to the nation and nationalities from this socio-psychological point of view. They make an attempt to differentiate the factors of belonging to a nation, its typical problems and seek an answer to the question that – considering the lessons drawn from the mistakes so far – how could the left wing approach the national issue.