Suchergebnisse

The Polish struggle has been characterized by many of its participants in terms of society against the state. This opposition first became apparent in the eighteenth century when the concept of civil society emerged; in Eastern Europe, however, both state & economy were stronger than society, leading to the emergence of state structures into which economy & society were absorbed. An intellectual movement has gradually emerged for structural reform instituted from below. Possible organizational types include monism, state corporatism, societal corporatism, & pluralism or syndicalism; at present, Poland's only options are the last two. The corporatist solution is most desirable for the ruling party, & could find backing from the Catholic Church. Decentralization is needed to solve the economic crisis, but threatens the party's capacity to intervene arbitrarily in the economy by leading to the creation of a system of private law. The ultimate solution requires both the preservation of socialism & the emergence of a socialist civil society whose relations with the state will be mediated through parliamentary or similar means. W. H. Stoddard.

EVER SINCE THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION MADE FREEDOM THE LEGITIMATING PRINCIPLE OF PUBLIC LIFE, POLITICS HAS GRAPPLED WITH THE PROBLEM OF ESTABLISHING THE JUST SOCIETY AND STATE UPON ITS BASIS RATHER THAN THAT OF GIVEN AUTHORITY OR INTERESTS, SET VIRTUES OR MEANS OF CONDUCT, OR A TRANSCENDENT FORM OF GOODNESS. IF SUBSEQUENT HISTORY HAS NOT RESOLVED HOW SELF-DETERMINATION CAN BE THE SUBSTANCE OF PUBLIC LIFE, IT HAS FOCUSED ATTENTION UPON TWO CENTRAL ASPECTS OF THE PROBLEM: FIRST, THE PLACE OF CAPITAL WITHIN THE JUST SOCIETY, AND SECOND, THE VALID RELATION BETWEEN SOCIETY AND STATE.

Several recent social movements have revived the theme of autonomy & self-defense of civil society against the state. Their efforts to create postbourgeois civil societies, however, have been blocked by the problem of sovereignty. The new movements seek to defend civil society's autonomy against the institutionalizations of state & economy. However, they require institutional embodiments to preserve their own gains. All the new movements tacitly recognize that civil society & the modern state are complementary, & thus are compelled to pursue dualistic strategies. An analysis of the concept of sovereignty suggests forms that can be taken by arguments against the centralization of sovereignty. Some considerations for strategies leading toward pluralism are outlined. 1 Figure. W. H. Stoddard