Constitutions Éphémères,Structures Sociales Durables? A Propos D'un Paradoxe Français

Abstract

Constitutional Transience and Social Stability? Perspectives on the French Paradox

This article argues – against a widespread interpretation – that constitutions have been more than merely superstructural phenomena in modern French history. First, if constitutional texts have often been short-lived, the same is not true of the constitution more broadly understood. Secondly, even the texts reveal much more continuity than we usually imagine. Thirdly, constitutional texts have often stood at the heart of political conflict because of the historical baggage attached to them. In the nineteenth century it was, typically, liberals who tried to shift the political agenda away from an obsession with constitutional texts: it was a culture of civility that France lacked, they argued.