Political Traditions in Modern France

by Hazareesingh, Sudhir

• ISBN13: 9780198780748
• ISBN10: 0198780745
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1994-08-11
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

This engaging new account of French politics takes an unconventional approach to its turbulent subject. Rather than seeing a political history of rupture and fragmentation, Hazareesingh emphasizes continuity, and shows how opposing parties and movements throughout French history have been brought together by ideas. Treating French political history from 1789 to the present, Hazareesingh focuses on the relationship between ideologies and political movements. He covers all the important features of French public life in the period, including the nature of republicanism, nationalism, and religion and the role of intellectuals. These features in turn provide the setting for his treatment of peace movements and the political traditions of liberalism, socialism, Gaullism, and communism. Written in a clear and accessible style, this book will be invaluable guide to French politics for students and scholars and an informative introduction for general readers interested in France.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(4)
Political Traditions in Modern France	5	(28)
The Political Roles of Intellectuals	33	(32)
The Republican Tradition	65	(33)
Religion, Clericalism, and the Republican State	98	(26)
The Two Faces of French Nationalism	124	(27)
The Strengths and Limits of the Etatiste Tradition	151	(27)
Why No Peace Movement in France?	178	(29)
Liberalism and the Elusive Search for Consensus	207	(24)
Resurrection and Death: the Socialist Tradition	231	(30)
Gaullism and the Quest for National Unity	261	(27)
The Implosion of the Communist Tradition	288	(27)
Bibliographies	315	(10)
Index	325