Verfassungskultur und Verfassungssoziologie

Rainer Schmidt's Verfassungskultur und Verfassungssoziologie examines the relationship between law and politics in 19th-century Germany, emphasizing constitutional culture and sociology.

In Verfassungskultur und Verfassungssoziologie, Rainer Schmidt explores the intricate relationship between law and politics through the lens of constitutional culture and sociology. He delves into the 19th-century German context, where foundational thoughts on the interplay of law, power, and constitution were articulated by influential philosophers such as Kant, Pölitz, and Hegel. This era was marked by a rich political constitutionalism that began to fade as legal positivism took hold, leading to a neglect of the essential political and social contexts surrounding the constitution.

The author argues that this neglect was only addressed again in the lead-up to the Weimar Constitution, highlighting the tension between a purely legalistic approach and a broader political constitutionalism in 19th-century Germany. Schmidt's work emphasizes the importance of integrating cultural scientific elements into the understanding of constitutions, particularly the symbolic dimensions of political orders. By doing so, he provides a framework to better grasp the complex validity contexts of constitutions.

Ultimately, Verfassungskultur und Verfassungssoziologie presents multidimensional concepts of constitutional culture and sociology as keys to analyzing the conditions and prerequisites for the validity of political order designs. This comprehensive examination sheds light on the historical and theoretical foundations that continue to influence contemporary discussions on constitutionalism.