Constituent Assemblies
Jon Elster editor Roberto Gargarella editor Bjørn Erik Rasch editor Vatsal Naresh editor
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Cambridge University Press
Published:8th Aug '19
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This paperback is available in another edition too:
- Hardback£100.00(9781108427524)
Since 1787, constituent assemblies have shaped politics. This book provides a comparative, theoretical framework for understanding them.
From the eighteenth century to the present, constituent assemblies have shaped the framework of politics. They differ from ordinary legislatures in that the stakes are higher, and that decisions are shaped by interests, ideology, and also by passions. The contributions in this book range from case studies to comparative analyses and theoretical arguments.Comparative constitutional law has a long pedigree, but the comparative study of constitution-making has emerged and taken form only in the last quarter-century. While much of the initial impetus came from the study of the American and French constituent assemblies in the late eighteenth century, this volume exemplifies the large comparative scope of current research. The contributors discuss constituent assemblies in South East Asia, North Africa and the Middle East, Latin America, and in Nordic countries. Among the new insights they provide is a better understanding of how constituent assemblies may fail, either by not producing a document at all or by adopting a constitution that fails to serve as a neutral framework for ordinary politics. In a theoretical afterword, Jon Elster, an inspirational thinker on the current topic, offers an analysis of the micro-foundations of constitution-making, with special emphasis on the role of crises-generated passions.
ISBN: 9781108446273
Dimensions: 230mm x 153mm x 14mm
Weight: 380g
265 pages