DOCSLIB.ORG

Political Ideas and Movements That Created the Modern World

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Political Ideas and Movements That Created the Modern World harri+b.cov 27/5/03 4:15 pm Page 1 UNDERSTANDINGPOLITICS Understanding RITTEN with the A2 component of the GCE WGovernment and Politics A level in mind, this book is a comprehensive introduction to the political ideas and movements that created the modern world. Underpinned by the work of major thinkers such as Hobbes, Locke, Marx, Mill, Weber and others, the first half of the book looks at core political concepts including the British and European political issues state and sovereignty, the nation, democracy, representation and legitimacy, freedom, equality and rights, obligation and citizenship. The role of ideology in modern politics and society is also discussed. The second half of the book addresses established ideologies such as Conservatism, Liberalism, Socialism, Marxism and Nationalism, before moving on to more recent movements such as Environmentalism and Ecologism, Fascism, and Feminism. The subject is covered in a clear, accessible style, including Understanding a number of student-friendly features, such as chapter summaries, key points to consider, definitions and tips for further sources of information. There is a definite need for a text of this kind. It will be invaluable for students of Government and Politics on introductory courses, whether they be A level candidates or undergraduates. political ideas KEVIN HARRISON IS A LECTURER IN POLITICS AND HISTORY AT MANCHESTER COLLEGE OF ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY. HE IS ALSO AN ASSOCIATE McNAUGHTON LECTURER IN SOCIAL SCIENCES WITH THE OPEN UNIVERSITY. HE HAS WRITTEN ARTICLES ON POLITICS AND HISTORY AND IS JOINT AUTHOR, WITH TONY BOYD, OF THE BRITISH CONSTITUTION: EVOLUTION OR REVOLUTION? and TONY BOYD WAS FORMERLY HEAD OF GENERAL STUDIES AT XAVERIAN VI FORM COLLEGE, MANCHESTER, WHERE HE TAUGHT POLITICS AND HISTORY. HE NOW TEACHES POLITICS AT WITHINGTON GIRLS SCHOOL, MANCHESTER movements KEVIN HARRISON and TONY BOYD UNDERSTANDINGPOLITICS Prelims 6/5/03 2:57 pm Page i UNDERSTANDING POLITICAL IDEAS AND MOVEMENTS Prelims 6/5/03 2:57 pm Page ii UNDERSTANDING POLITICS Series editor DUNCAN WATTS Following the review of the national curriculum for 16–19 year olds, UK examining boards introduced new specifications, first used in 2001 and 2002. A level courses are now divided into A/S level for the first year of sixth-form studies, and the more difficult A2 level thereafter. The Understanding Politics series comprehensively covers the politics syllabuses of all the major examination boards, featuring a dedicated A/S level textbook and five books aimed at A2 students. The books are written in an accessible, user-friendly and jargon-free manner and will be essential to students sitting these examinations. Already published Understanding American government and politics Duncan Watts Understanding A/S level government and politics Chris Wilson Prelims 6/5/03 2:57 pm Page iii Understanding political ideas and movements A guide for A2 politics students KEVIN HARRISON and TONY BOYD Manchester University Press Manchester and New York distributed exclusively in the USA by Palgrave Prelims 6/5/03 2:57 pm Page iv Copyright © Kevin Harrison and Tony Boyd 2003 The right of Kevin Harrison and Tony Boyd to be identified as the authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. Published by Manchester University Press Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9NR, UK and Room 400, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010, USA www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk Distributed exclusively in the USA by Palgrave, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010, USA Distribued exclusively in Canada by UBC Press, University of British Columbia, 2029 West Mall, Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z2 British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data applied for ISBN 0 7190 6151 2 paperback First published 2003 111009080706050403 10987654321 Typeset by Northern Phototypesetting Co. Ltd, Bolton Printed in Great Britain by Bell & Bain Ltd, Glasgow Prelims 6/5/03 2:57 pm Page v Contents Preface and acknowledgements page vii Introduction 1 1 The state and sovereignty 16 2 The nation 37 3 Democracy 58 4 Freedom 83 5 Equality 103 6 Rights, obligations and citizenship 121 7 The role of ideology in politics and society 135 8 Nationalism 154 9 Conservatism 174 10 Liberalism 195 11 Socialism 214 12 Marxism and anarchism 237 13 Fascism 256 14 Environmentalism and ecologism 274 15 Feminism 295 Concluding remarks 309 Glossary of major figures 323 Suggested further reading 340 Index 345 Prelims 6/5/03 2:57 pm Page vi Prelims 6/5/03 2:57 pm Page vii Introduction vii Preface and acknowledgements The contents of this book, and its general structure, have been very largely governed by the aim of fulfilling the various examining board syllabuses for GCE Government and Politics A2 level. It is particularly relevant to OCR (Module 7), ‘UK Politics and Modern Political Ideas: Theory and Practice’; EDEXCEL Route B (Units 4, 5 and 6), ‘Political Ideologies’; AQA (Module 7), ‘Ideas in Contemporary British Politics’; and AQA (Module 8), ‘Government and Politics – Synoptic Module’. The book should also be relevant to a broad range of Open College Network Level Three Access courses in Political Ideas, Political Studies or Modern Political Movements, and introductory undergraduate courses in Politics. We hope that people not studying for examinations will find this book of use in helping them understand the political world and the assumptions that shape the clatter and chatter of those who presume to govern us. We must gratefully acknowledge those who have made a contribution to this book: Erik Olive for his cynical and amusing comments on a number of chapters and Angela Dale, who took on the daunting task of correcting grammar and spelling and untangling the meaning of the more complicated sentences. Our heartfelt thanks to them both. Our sincere thanks to family, friends and colleagues for tolerating us in normal times and even more so as the book moved towards its completion. Finally, we would like to dedicate this book to Tony Ivers, our late friend and colleague, who is much missed. Kevin Harrison Tony Boyd THE POLITICS ASSOCIATION is a registered educational charity, committed to the diffusion of political knowledge and understanding. It produces a wide range of resources on government and politics, and on citizenship. Members receive the journal, Talking Politics, three times a year. Further details can be obtained from the Politics Association, Old Hall Lane, Manchester, M13 0XT, Tel./Fax.: 0161 256 3906; email: [email protected] Intro 6/5/03 3:00 pm Page 1 Introduction (W)e should try to grasp, in outline at any rate, what the good is, and which science or capacity is concerned with it. It seems to concern the most controlling science, the one that, more than any other is the master science. And political science apparently has this character. (Aristotle, Nicomachean Ethics, Book 1:2) A good politician is quite as unthinkable as an honest burglar. (H. L. Mencken, Prejudices, 1925) Readers will peruse this book in vain if they seek an outline of the British political system, discussion on comparative government, identification of the structure and roles of parties and pressure groups in modern democracies, or even detailed discussions of the major thinkers and philosophers in the Western political tradition. Neither will they find a guide to the detailed policies of the major political movements in Britain and other liberal democracies. In liberal democracies there is a belief that citizens ought to take an active interest in what is happening in the political world. It is a view that the authors of this book share. For generations, people have fought and died for the right to put a cross on a piece of paper (or some other means of recording a vote) in countries such as the UK. In far too many countries the sort of views about the government that we regularly express in Britain land people in prison – or worse. We strongly believe that you, as a citizen, should take an interest in politics; after all, even if you don’t, you can rest assured that politics will take an interest in you! During your lifetime you will be taxed, observed, regulated and, potentially, conscripted into Her Majesty’s armed forces. You are likely to be educated in state schools, colleges and universities, be treated at state-run hospitals by state-trained doctors and nurses when ill, and claim state benefits when unemployed, sick or retired. Political debate in modern Western democracies is a complex and often rowdy affair. It often gives the impression that it involves little thought and contem- plation beyond shouting and opposing whatever the other side proposes as the solution to the ills of society. Indeed, it may have contributed to declining Intro 6/5/03 3:00 pm Page 2 2 Understanding political ideas and movements voter turnout in most Western democracies. Some recent studies showed that voter ‘apathy’ during the record low turnout in the 2001 general election may have little to do with apathy and much to do with voter disappointment in politicians and the political process. The ‘yah-boo’ behaviour of some Westminster politicians does, nevertheless, reflect the intense passions that politics can elicit from its participants. Think about what politicians carry around as their intellectual baggage when they are discussing – shouting about – some of the following questions: • How much should be spent on health,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Conservative Ministers in the Coalition Government of 2010-15: Evidence of Bias in the Ministerial Selections of David Cameron?
    This is a repository copy of Conservative Ministers in the Coalition Government of 2010-15: Evidence of Bias in the Ministerial Selections of David Cameron?. White Rose Research Online URL for this paper: http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/99728/ Version: Accepted Version Article: Heppell, T orcid.org/0000-0001-9851-6993 and Crines, A (2016) Conservative Ministers in the Coalition Government of 2010-15: Evidence of Bias in the Ministerial Selections of David Cameron? Journal of Legislative Studies, 22 (3). pp. 385-403. ISSN 1357-2334 https://doi.org/10.1080/13572334.2016.1202647 (c) 2016, Taylor & Francis. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Journal of Legislative Studies on 14 July 2016, available online: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13572334.2016.1202647 Reuse Unless indicated otherwise, fulltext items are protected by copyright with all rights reserved. The copyright exception in section 29 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 allows the making of a single copy solely for the purpose of non-commercial research or private study within the limits of fair dealing. The publisher or other rights-holder may allow further reproduction and re-use of this version - refer to the White Rose Research Online record for this item. Where records identify the publisher as the copyright holder, users can verify any specific terms of use on the publisher’s website. Takedown If you consider content in White Rose Research Online to be in breach of UK law, please notify us by emailing [email protected] including the URL of the record and the reason for the withdrawal request.
    [Show full text]
  • Coalition Politics: How the Cameron-Clegg Relationship Affects
    Canterbury Christ Church University’s repository of research outputs http://create.canterbury.ac.uk Please cite this publication as follows: Bennister, M. and Heffernan, R. (2011) Cameron as Prime Minister: the intra- executive politics of Britain’s coalition. Parliamentary Affairs, 65 (4). pp. 778-801. ISSN 0031-2290. Link to official URL (if available): http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/pa/gsr061 This version is made available in accordance with publishers’ policies. All material made available by CReaTE is protected by intellectual property law, including copyright law. Any use made of the contents should comply with the relevant law. Contact: [email protected] Cameron as Prime Minister: The Intra-Executive Politics of Britain’s Coalition Government Mark Bennister Lecturer in Politics, Canterbury Christ Church University Email: [email protected] Richard Heffernan Reader in Government, The Open University Email: [email protected] Abstract Forming a coalition involves compromise, so a prime minister heading up a coalition government, even one as predominant a party leader as Cameron, should not be as powerful as a prime minister leading a single party government. Cameron has still to work with and through ministers from his own party, but has also to work with and through Liberal Democrat ministers; not least the Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg. The relationship between the prime minister and his deputy is unchartered territory for recent academic study of the British prime minister. This article explores how Cameron and Clegg operate within both Whitehall and Westminster: the cabinet arrangements; the prime minister’s patronage, advisory resources and more informal mechanisms.
    [Show full text]
  • Facets of Democracy: an Overview
    Molung Educational Frontier 15 Facets of Democracy: An Overview Aswasthama Bhakta Kharel, PhD* Abstract Democracy allows the expression of political preferences of citizens in a state. It advocates the rule of law, constraints on executive’s power, and guarantees the provision of civil liberties. It also manages to ensure human rights and fundamental freedoms of people. In democracy, people are supposed to exercise their freely expressed will. Ordinary people hold the political power of the state and rule directly or through elected representatives inside a democratic form of government. Democracy is a participatory and liberal way of governing a country. Different countries in the world have been practicing various models of democracy. There remains the participation of people in government and policy-making of the state under democracy. But when the majority can pull the strings of the society without there being legislation for protecting the rights of the minority, it may create a severe risk of oppression. Many countries of the world at the present time are facing democratic deficits. In several countries, the democratic practices are not adequately regulated and governed, as a result, the rise of violations of rules of law is observed. Even a few countries practicing democracy are not living peacefully. This situation has put a significant question about the need and sustainability of democracy. Democracy is a widely used system of governance beyond having several challenges. Here the concept, origin, models, dimensions, practices, challenges, solutions, and future of democracy are dealt to understand the structure of ideal democracy. Keywords: democracy, human rights, rule of law, sustainable development, election Methodology The methodology applied in maintaining this research paper includes documentary analysis qualitatively where different journals, public documents, organizational reports, articles, and books are referred, and their factual data are considered.
    [Show full text]
  • The Future of the UK
    The Future of the UK Between Internal and External Divisions Edited by Marius Guderjan Imprint © 2016 Editor: Marius Guderjan Individual chapters in order © Marius Guderjan, Pauline Schnapper, Sandra Schwindenhammer, Neil McGarvey and Fraser Stewart, Paul Cairney, Paul Carmichael and Arjan Schakel. Centre for British Studies Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin www.gbz.hu-berlin.de Design: Sandra van Lente Cover: Marius Guderjan Cover picture: www.shutterstock.com A printed version of this ebook is available upon request. Printed by WESTKREUZ-DRUCKEREI AHRENS KG Berlin www.westkreuz.de Funded by the Future Concept resources of Humboldt- Universität zu Berlin through the Excellence Initiative of the German Federal Government and its Federal States. The Future of the UK Between Internal and External Divisions Edited by Marius Guderjan Contents Foreword 4 Notes on Contributors 6 1. Between Internal and External Divisions 9 Marius Guderjan 2. The EU Referendum and the Crisis of British Democracy 31 Pauline Schnapper 3. Loose but not Lost! Four Challenges for the EU in the 42 Aftermath of the British Referendum Sandra Schwindenhammer 4. European, not British? Scottish Nationalism and the EU 59 Referendum Neil McGarvey and Fraser Stewart 5. The Future of Scotland in the UK: Does the Remarkable 71 Popularity of the SNP Make Independence Inevitable? Paul Cairney 6. Reflections from Northern Ireland on the Result of the 82 UK Referendum on EU Membership Paul Carmichael 7. Moving Towards a Dissolved or Strengthened Union? 102 Arjan H. Schakel 3 Foreword In the light of the British referendum on EU membership on 23 June, the Centre for British Studies of the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin organised a series of public lectures on the future of the UK during the summer term 2016.
    [Show full text]
  • The Corporatism of Fascist Italy Between Words and Reality
    CORPORATIVISMO HISTÓRICO NO BRASIL E NA EUROPA http://dx.doi.org/10.15448/1980-864X.2016.2.22336 The corporatism of Fascist Italy between words and reality O corporativismo da Itália fascista entre palavras e realidade El corporativismo de la Italia fascista entre las palabras y la realidad Alessio Gagliardi* Translated by Sergio Knipe Abstract: It is common knowledge that State intervention in Italy in the Twenties and the Thirties developed outside of corporative institutions. The history of Fascist corporatism, however, is not only an unsuccessful story. Despite the failure of the “corporatist revolution” and “Fascist third way”, Fascist corporatism since the mid- Twenties helped the progressive development of a new political system to regulate relationship between State and private interests. The paper examines not only the institutional framework (the systems of formal laws, regulations, and procedures, and informal norms) but also their acts and real activities. It dwells upon internal debates, political and institutional importance acquired by corporative institutions in Fascist regime and behaviours of entrepreneurial organizations and labour unions. In this way, the paper aims to point out the “real” consequences of Fascist corporatism, different from the ideological ones. Keywords: corporatism; Fascism; Italy Resumo: É de conhecimento geral que intervenções estatais na Itália nas décadas de 1920 e 1930 se desenvolveram fora de instituições corporativas. A história do corporativismo fascista, no entanto, não é totalmente sem sucessos. Apesar da falha da “revolução corporativista” e da “terceira via fascista”, o corporativismo fascista, desde meados dos anos 1920, ajudou no desenvolvimento progressivo de um novo sistema político para regular a relação entre o Estado e interesses privados.
    [Show full text]
  • Israel: Growing Pains at 60
    Viewpoints Special Edition Israel: Growing Pains at 60 The Middle East Institute Washington, DC Middle East Institute The mission of the Middle East Institute is to promote knowledge of the Middle East in Amer- ica and strengthen understanding of the United States by the people and governments of the region. For more than 60 years, MEI has dealt with the momentous events in the Middle East — from the birth of the state of Israel to the invasion of Iraq. Today, MEI is a foremost authority on contemporary Middle East issues. It pro- vides a vital forum for honest and open debate that attracts politicians, scholars, government officials, and policy experts from the US, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. MEI enjoys wide access to political and business leaders in countries throughout the region. Along with information exchanges, facilities for research, objective analysis, and thoughtful commentary, MEI’s programs and publications help counter simplistic notions about the Middle East and America. We are at the forefront of private sector public diplomacy. Viewpoints are another MEI service to audiences interested in learning more about the complexities of issues affecting the Middle East and US rela- tions with the region. To learn more about the Middle East Institute, visit our website at http://www.mideasti.org The maps on pages 96-103 are copyright The Foundation for Middle East Peace. Our thanks to the Foundation for graciously allowing the inclusion of the maps in this publication. Cover photo in the top row, middle is © Tom Spender/IRIN, as is the photo in the bottom row, extreme left.
    [Show full text]
  • Three Objections to Constitutional Patriotism
    cons˙433 CONS2006.cls (1994/07/13 v1.2u Standard LaTeX document class) 3-13-2007 :1237 Three Objections to Constitutional Patriotism Jan-Werner M¨uller Love of country becomes love of leviathan or behemoth, even when, and sometimes especially when, one’s country is a modern republic – that is, a constitutional democ- racy. George Kateb As is well known, constitutional patriotism designates the idea that political attach- ment ought to centre on the norms, the values, and, more indirectly, the procedures of a liberal-democratic constitution. Put differently, allegiance and attachment are not owed primarily to a national culture, as liberal nationalists have claimed, or to “to the world- wide community of human beings,” as for instance Martha Nussbaum’s conception of cosmopolitanism has it.1 As is less well known, the concept of constitutional patriotism has enjoyed very varying fortunes. It was born in postwar divided Germany and has often been seen as a poor substitute for a ‘proper’ national identity – a substitute that was to become redun- dant after the country’s unification. Yet the concept experienced a major renaissance in the 1990s when observers both inside and outside Germany began to view it as a normatively attractive form of civic attachment for increasingly multicultural societies; in recent years, it has also been advanced as a way of conceptualizing “civic identifica- tion” at the supranational level, with some scholars explicitly calling for a “European constitutional patriotism.”2 Finally, constitutional patriotism has
    [Show full text]
  • The Height of Its Womanhood': Women and Genderin Welsh Nationalism, 1847-1945
    'The height of its womanhood': Women and genderin Welsh nationalism, 1847-1945 Item Type text; Dissertation-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Kreider, Jodie Alysa Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 09/10/2021 04:59:55 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/280621 'THE HEIGHT OF ITS WOMANHOOD': WOMEN AND GENDER IN WELSH NATIONALISM, 1847-1945 by Jodie Alysa Kreider Copyright © Jodie Alysa Kreider 2004 A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY In Partia' Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2004 UMI Number: 3145085 Copyright 2004 by Kreider, Jodie Alysa All rights reserved. INFORMATION TO USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleed-through, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. UMI UMI Microform 3145085 Copyright 2004 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code.
    [Show full text]
  • South Korea: Legal and Political Overtones of Defensive Democracy in a Divided Country South Korea Has Already Passed Samuel
    South Korea: Legal and Political Overtones of Defensive Democracy in a Divided Country KWANGSUP KIM South Korea has already passed Samuel Huntington’s two-turnover test for democratic consolidation, which occurred with the peaceful transitions of power in 1992 and 1996. This occurred despite the enduring military tension on the divided Korean peninsula. Huntington said that when a nation transitions from an “emergent democracy” to a “stable democracy,” its ruling parties must undergo two democratic and peaceful turnovers.1 However, there still exists heated controversy over whether the executive power violates democratic rule and human rights in the name of national security. This is despite the fact that the military authoritarian regime perished in 1987 and subsequent civilian governments have accomplished democratic reform. On November 6, 2013, the Ministry of Justice in South Korea petitioned to the Constitutional Court to rule on dissolving the minor Unified Progressive Party (UPP) for violating the “basic rules of democracy.”2 The ministry’s filing comes after the prosecution of indicted lawmaker, Lee Seok-ki of the UPP on September 5, 2013, on charges of conspiracy to stage a rebellion, incitement and sympathizing with North Korea, and infringement of the Kwangsup Kim is a Ph.D. Fellow at Center for Constitutional Democracy of Indiana University Maurer School of Law, an academic director and vice chairperson of the Committee of Women’s Rights at the Human Rights & Welfare Institution of Korea., and a Member of the Board of Directors at The Correction Welfare Society of Korea. 1 Samuel P. Huntington, “The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century.” Norman: University of Oklahoma Press 14 (1991): 26.
    [Show full text]
  • Progressive Nationalism Citizenship and the Left
    As ties of religion, class and ethnicity weaken, national identity may be the best way to preserve the Left’s collective ideals… Progressive Nationalism Citizenship and the Left David Goodhart About Demos Who we are Demos is the think tank for everyday democracy. We believe everyone should be able to make personal choices in their daily lives that contribute to the common good. Our aim is to put this democratic idea into practice by working with organisations in ways that make them more effective and legitimate. What we work on We focus on six areas: public services; science and technology; cities and public space; people and communities; arts and culture; and global security. Who we work with Our partners include policy-makers, companies, public service providers and social entrepreneurs. Demos is not linked to any party but we work with politicians across political divides. Our international network – which extends across Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Australia, Brazil, India and China – provides a global perspective and enables us to work across borders. How we work Demos knows the importance of learning from experience. We test and improve our ideas in practice by working with people who can make change happen. Our collaborative approach means that our partners share in the creation and ownership of new ideas. What we offer We analyse social and political change, which we connect to innovation and learning in organisations.We help our partners show thought leadership and respond to emerging policy challenges. How we communicate As an independent voice, we can create debates that lead to real change.We use the media, public events, workshops and publications to communicate our ideas.
    [Show full text]
  • State, Democracy, Socialism
    chapter 6 State, Democracy, Socialism The ‘third way’ to socialism was complementary to the Austromarxists’ reflec- tions on the state and the direction that Social-Democratic politics aspired to take within the bourgeois-democratic framework. The idiosyncratic quality of these analyses was that they understood the state, law, and forms of political order (democracy, dictatorship) as mutually independent forms: they distin- guished between a formal and a sociological order – i.e. they abstracted the form of phenomena from their content and social function. The views of Hans Kelsen, a moderate liberal theorist on law and the state and founder of the ‘pure theory of law’, provided the basis for this differentiation.1 Three fundamental theses of legal normativism were most influential in the Austromarxists’ the- ory of state formation. The first was of a purely formal character of political and legal categories, which granted them the status of a priori ideas. The second served to justify the dualism between being and ought, form and content, facts and values, causality and normativity, and, ultimately, law and politics. The third was the assumption that the state was synonymous with the law, and as such the territorial order was identical to the coercive order. Owing to the fact that they drew on Kelsen’s ‘pure theory of law’, the Austromarxists developed perspectives on democracy and the state which are still discussed today.2 The Austromarxian theory of law and the state was devised mainly by Karl Renner and Max Adler. Renner in particular focused on the formal aspects of the categories under investigation, while Adler researched both normative and sociological functions.
    [Show full text]
  • M Franchi Thesis for Library
    The London School of Economics and Political Science Mediated tensions: Italian newspapers and the legal recognition of de facto unions Marina Franchi A thesis submitted to the Gender Institute of the London School of Economics for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, London, May 2015 1 Declaration I certify that the thesis I have presented for examination for the MPhil/PhD degree of the London School of Economics and Political Science is solely my own work. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without my prior written consent. I warrant that this authorisation does not, to the best of my belief, infringe the rights of any third party. I declare that my thesis consists of 88924 words. Statement of use of third party for editorial help (if applicable) I can confirm that my thesis was copy edited for conventions of language, spelling and grammar by Hilary Wright 2 Abstract The recognition of rights to couples outside the institution of marriage has been, and still is, a contentious issue in Italian Politics. Normative notions of family and kinship perpetuate the exclusion of those who do not conform to the heterosexual norm. At the same time the increased visibility of kinship arrangements that evade the heterosexual script and their claims for legal recognition, expose the fragility and the constructedness of heteronorms. During the Prodi II Government (2006-2008) the possibility of a law recognising legal status to de facto unions stirred a major controversy in which the conservative political forces and the Catholic hierarchies opposed any form of recognition, with particular acrimony shown toward same sex couples.
    [Show full text]