The author addresses the question of whether globalization of law is possible in a world full of tensions due to an increase in economic inequality and the rise of national and regional differences. She discusses whether it is reasonable or imaginable to have an organized set of norms when the helter-skelter proliferation of norms and the displacement of landmarks create instead the impression of normative disorder. She then explores whether the globalization of law is ethically desirable, when none of our international institutions are currently able to guarantee respect for democratic values. Originally published in French under the title Trois Defis Pour Un Droit Mondial. Published under the Transnational Publishers imprint.
The relationship between the European Union and its member states is complex and continually evolving. This book seeks to explore not only the nature of this relationship, but the broader implications of European integration for the ways in which politics in Europe is studied. It addresses three major questions. How has European integration affected national politics and public policies? To what extent has the existence of the EU challenged existing approaches to the study of national politics? How appropriate is it to attempt to study the EU using the analytical tools traditionally used to study nation states? The intention is to consider the impact of European integration both on the nature and the study of politics in western Europe. These questions are addressed by a group of distinguished academics from both Europe and North America. Their findings will be of great interest to all those interested in the European Union and in West European politics more generally.
This book argues that the last four decades have seen profound and important changes in the nature and social location of religion, and that those changes are best understood when cast against the associated rise of consumerism and neoliberalism. These transformations are often misunderstood and underestimated, namely because the study of religion remains dependent on the secularisation paradigm which can no longer provide a sufficiently fruitful framework for analysis. The book challenges diagnoses of transience and fragmentation by proposing an alternative narrative and set of concepts for understanding the global religious landscape. The present situation is framed as the result of a shift from a National-Statist to a Global-Market regime of religion. Adopting a holistic perspective that breaks with the current specialisation tendencies, it charts the emergence of the State and the Market as institutions and ideas related to social order, as well as their changing rapports from classical modernity to today. Breaking with a tradition of Western-centeredness, the book offers probing enquiries into Indonesia and a synthesis of global and Western trends. This long-awaited book offers a bold new vision for the social scientific study of religion and will be of great interest to all scholars of the Sociology and Anthropology of religion, as well as Religious Studies in general.
Globalization is effecting a close convergence of sport and foreign policy. In order to respond to novel social, political, cultural and economic pressures, states are increasingly turning to sport as a foreign policy instrument; and they cannot ignore the corresponding influence that global sport has on their core interests. This book is devoted to exploring this relationship in detail. Although any examination of sport and foreign policy inevitably focuses on issues related to both politics and international relations, the primary intention here is to consider the dimensions associated with foreign policy. This book was previously published as a special issue of Sport in Society.
The Oxford Handbook of French Politics provides a comprehensive and comparative overview of the French political system through the lens of political science. The Handbook is organized into three parts: the first part identifies foundational concepts for the French case, including chapters on republicanism and social welfare; the second part focuses on thematic large-scale processes, such identity, governance, and globalization; while the third part examines a wide range of issues relating to substantive politics and policy, among which are chapters on political representation, political culture, social movements, economic policy, gender policy, and defense and security policy. The volume brings together established and emerging scholars and seeks to examine the French political system from a comparative perspective. The contributors provide a state-of-the-art review both of the comparative scholarly literature and the study of the French case, making The Oxford Handbook of French Politics an invaluable resource for anyone interested in the foundations of contemporary political life in France.
Throughout the world, liberal-democracies are grappling with increasing claims made in the name of minority national, socio-cultural and ethno-cultural identities that seek greater recognition in the institutions of the nation-state. This work inserts itself into debates centred on diversity through a normative and empirical analytical assessment of the political sociology of multinational democracies. The main thread of the arguments put forward is that federalism, in both its institutional manifestations and its sociological properties, constitutes a promising avenue for the management of cohabitating political communities and for the affirmation of collective identities within states that are constituted by two or more nations. Author Alain-G Gagnon develops his argument by contending that the federal principle allows for the exercise of advanced democratic practices within nation-states, permitting internal nations to openly affirm the bases of adherence to a common political project. At the same time, he argues that federalism nourishes the development of distinct collective traditions that serve to benefit all parties to the association. It is concluded that only in such a scenario will the elusive pursuit of an authentic and shared loyalty underpin multination states and ensure their stability, in contrast to the instrumental sentiments of belonging engendered by procedural territorial federal models. Focusing primarily on the Canadian case, this book also draws inspiration from other federal states (Belgium, the United States), as well as federalizing states (Spain, the United Kingdom). It will be of keen interest to students and scholars of Politics, European Studies, along with Nationalism and Federalism Studies.
Gueldry analyzes the substantive transformations brought upon the French state by European integration through an incremental and cumulative process generally described as Europeanization. This restructuring is characterized by the erosion of traditional political and economic parameters, the emergence of new means and models of public action, and a general paradigmatic redefinition, including a search for renewed political legitimacy by French elite. Covering the period from 1957 to the present, Gueldry examines how regional integration affects French governmental structures, public policies, political processes, and culture. He emphasizes the post-Single European Act (February 1986) period because of the accelerating momentum of the integration process after this milestone treaty. Students, scholars, and policy makers involved with EU history, institutions, and policies will be particularly interested in the work.