Hans Kelsen on Constitutional Democracy: Genesis, Theory, Legacies

doi:10.1017/9781009230360

This volume challenges conventional interpretations by demonstrating that Hans Kelsen was far from being a purely formalist thinker. Instead, it highlights his profound and enduring engagement with the threats facing constitutional democracies. The political and institutional upheavals of interwar Europe significantly influenced Kelsen's evolving vision of democracy, as this volume shows. His contributions to twentieth-century democratic theory include groundbreaking insights into multiparty systems, mechanisms of moderation, minority protections, and judicial review. Furthermore, Kelsen's reflections on the crises and collapses of democracies during the 1930s remain strikingly relevant, offering valuable perspectives on contemporary challenges such as polarisation and populism. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.

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Contents

Hans Kelsen on Constitutional Democracy
pp i-i
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Cambridge Studies in Constitutional Law - Series page
pp ii-ii
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Hans Kelsen on Constitutional Democracy - Title page
pp iii-iii
Genesis, Theory, Legacies
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Copyright page
pp iv-iv
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Contents
pp v-vi
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Contributors
pp vii-vii
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Acknowledgements
pp viii-x
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Introduction
pp 1-40
- By Sandrine Baume, David Ragazzoni
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Part I - Genesis
pp 41-144
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1 - The Forgotten Beginnings of Kelsen as a Political and Legal Theorist
pp 43-72
‘Dante Alighieri’s Philosophy of the State’ (1905)
- By David Ragazzoni
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2 - The Origins of the Fragility of Interwar Democracies
pp 73-97
Kelsen and Neumann
- By Peter Langford
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3 - The Making of Kelsen’s Concept of Democracy
pp 98-122
- By Matthias Jestaedt
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4 - Ideal and Real Democracy in Hans Kelsen’s Political Work (1918–1955)
pp 123-144
- By Sara Lagi
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Part II - Theory
pp 145-262
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5 - The Essence and Value of Political Parties
pp 147-170
- By Nadia Urbinati
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6 - Revisiting Kelsen’s Party Constitutionalism
pp 171-192
- By Fabio Wolkenstein
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7 - Kelsen’s Argument for Constitutional Review
pp 193-218
A Reappraisal
- By Lars Vinx
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8 - The Genius of Democracy
pp 219-236
Kelsen and Schumpeter
- By Adam Przeworski
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9 - The Drive towards Substance in Kelsen’s Pure Theory of Law
pp 237-262
- By David Dyzenhaus
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Part III - Legacies
pp 263-372
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10 - Hans Kelsen, Leo Strauss, and the Crisis of American Democracy
pp 265-291
- By William E. Scheuerman
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11 - Relativism and Leadership in Hans Kelsen’s Theory of Democracy
pp 292-317
- By Carlo Invernizzi Accetti, Nicole Peisajovich
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12 - Can’t We All Just Get Along?
pp 318-335
Revisiting Kelsen’s Account of Parliamentarism, Political Parties, and Compromise
- By Jan-Werner Müller
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13 - The Kelsenian Critique of Militant Democracy
pp 336-362
Its Contemporary Echoes
- By Sandrine Baume
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Afterword
pp 363-372
Hans Kelsen and the Time of Democracy
- By Duncan Kelly
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Index
pp 373-381
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