Growing up in New York with artist parents - a very liberal

The actress and thinker Claire Danes once reflected on her upbringing with these words: “Growing up in New York with artist parents—a very liberal environment, where we were always encouraged to challenge the status quo—I think for a long time I confused jingoism with patriotism. And that is a mistake.” In this confession lies a profound truth: that the boundary between true patriotism and false jingoism is often blurred, and those who cannot discern it risk either rejecting love of country altogether or embracing it in a distorted, dangerous form.

For patriotism is a noble flame, the love of one’s country rooted in responsibility, devotion, and the desire to see it grow toward justice. Jingoism, however, is a counterfeit fire—a pride swollen into arrogance, an unthinking exaltation of nation at the expense of truth, humility, and compassion. Where patriotism unites, jingoism divides. Where patriotism seeks to build, jingoism seeks only to boast. Danes, raised to question authority and challenge conventions, speaks honestly of her early confusion. She teaches us that to mistake one for the other is to fall into error, for true patriotism is not blind pride but wise loyalty.

History gives us countless warnings of this confusion. Consider the tale of World War I, when jingoism swept through nations like wildfire. Songs, posters, and speeches glorified battle as if it were sport, and those who hesitated were shamed as cowards. Millions marched to slaughter not in the spirit of true patriotism, which honors the dignity of human life, but under the spell of jingoistic fervor. The result was not glory, but devastation. In contrast, after the war, voices like that of Wilfred Owen, the poet-soldier, rose to remind the world of the difference between hollow slogans and the costly truth of sacrifice. His poems, like Danes’s reflection, called humanity to distinguish between loyalty that uplifts and pride that destroys.

The ancients, too, warned against such folly. The Greeks taught that hubris—excessive pride—was the downfall of men and nations alike. Jingoism is hubris dressed in patriotic colors, blinding people to their faults and deafening them to the cries of others. True patriotism, however, is balanced by humility, acknowledging a nation’s virtues while working to correct its flaws. It is not silence in the face of injustice, but the courage to demand better from the land you love.

Danes’s words, born from her upbringing in a liberal and questioning household, remind us that true love of country cannot be separated from the courage to challenge it. To challenge does not mean to betray; rather, it means to refine, to purify, to hold the nation accountable to its highest ideals. Patriotism without questioning becomes idolatry; questioning without love becomes rootless rebellion. The balance of both is where wisdom lies.

Let this be a lesson for every generation: do not mistake shouting for strength, nor boasting for loyalty. If you see your fellow citizens confuse jingoism with patriotism, speak with clarity. Remind them that to love one’s country does not mean to declare it flawless, but to labor for its betterment. Teach your children that patriotism is not about conquering others, but about serving, protecting, and lifting the nation into greater justice and unity.

Practically, live this teaching by engaging with your community and your nation critically, yet lovingly. Stand for truth even when it challenges authority, and honor the sacrifices of those who came before by striving for a brighter tomorrow. Reject slogans that glorify hatred or blind nationalism, and instead practice patriotism of the heart, one that is humble, just, and compassionate. In this way, you will not fall into the mistake Danes warns of, but will carry forward the higher, truer love of country that both honors the past and builds the future.

Thus, remember her words as a safeguard: patriotism is love that seeks truth, while jingoism is pride that blinds. Do not confuse the two. For one builds nations into light, while the other drags them into shadow. Choose the higher path, and teach it to those who come after you, that they too may walk in wisdom.