A Union of Diversity: Language, Identity and Polity-Building in Europe

by Peter A. Kraus

• ISBN13: 9780521859394
• ISBN10: 0521859395
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-03-10
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

The European Unions motto United in Diversity contrasts with the cultural standardization entailed in the formation of nation-states and the forging of political identities in Europe. So what does being united in diversity mean? Focusing on language politics and policies, this book offers a thorough assessment of the implications of cultural and linguistic diversity for the process of constructing a European polity. It sheds light on some of the most pressing problems associated with contemporary identity politics. It is often claimed that the recurrent celebration of diversity in Europes programmatic declarations has an effective political impact. Kraus offers a critical analysis of how the EU has responded to the normative challenge of creating an institutional frame for integration which allows cultural differences to be transcended without ignoring them.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figure	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
Introduction: The dynamics of European integration	p. 1
The Transnational Political Space of the European Union	p. 2
Integration and Legitimation in a Diverse Polity	p. 7
The European Union's democratic deficit and the search for a European demos	p. 13
The Challenge of Democracy in the European Union	p. 14
The Democracy Deficit: A 'Demos Deficit'?	p. 21
Between Westphalia and Cosmopolis	p. 26
Sovereignty as Homogeneity	p. 29
Assessing the European Union Against the National Model	p. 32
The identity of a multinational polity	p. 37
Cultural Identity and Political Integration	p. 38
European Identity Strategies	p. 43
Limits of European Identity	p. 50
Socio-Cultural Heterogeneity in Multilevel Politics	p. 58
The 'Multinational Moment' in Europe's Institutional Order	p. 62
An Example: The 'Battle of the Nations' at Nice	p. 66
Distinctive Features of Cultural Pluralism in the European Multinational Community	p. 70
Language and politics: A challenge for Europe	p. 76
Language as a Social and Political Bond	p. 78
Mill's Verdict	p. 83
The Language Policies of European States	p. 88
From Linguistic Pluralism to Linguistic Recognition	p. 99
Language and the Protection of Minorities in the Context of a European Human Rights Regime	p. 105
The language question in the institutional complex of the European Union	p. 111
The Institutional Path to Multilingualism	p. 112
Official and Real Multilingualism	p. 120
The Politicization of the Language Issue	p. 125
The Reform of the Institutional Regulation of Language: A Pending Debate	p. 132
Political communication in the transnational civil society	p. 139
Constitution, Publicity, Language	p. 140
Political Communication in Multilingual Contexts	p. 144
Europe's Linguistic Landscape and the External Language Policy of the European Union	p. 152
Vanishing Point Internet?	p. 161
Which Language for a European Civil Society?	p. 167
The Political Option of a Converging Multilingualism	p. 172
Recognition, self-determination and integration in a union of diversity	p. 180
Recognition and Subsidiarity	p. 181
Self-Determination	p. 188
Diversity as a Political Challenge	p. 195
References	p. 199
Index	p. 217
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