The State and Citizens in Modern Society - A Perspective from Republicanist Constitutional Theory

Author: Liu Cheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: In modern society, the state and the citizen constitute the subjects of constitutional relations, and their relationship is the most fundamental and core content of a constitutional society. Different constitutional theories have different understandings of what the state is, what the citizen is, and their relationship. This book attempts to study this issue from the perspective of republican constitutional theory. What we hear from the republicans is not only the explicit teachings about individual freedom but also the subtle teachings about creating a new power system for modern large nation-states. Therefore, the basic spirit of "republicanism" lies not only in "citizen freedom" within the republic but also in the strong sovereign power and political authority. This book hopes to re-examine the connotations of the state and the citizen and the boundaries between them along this line of republican constitutional theory, thereby seeking a possibility for building a harmonious relationship between the state and the citizen, and ultimately proving the conclusion that "a state with strong political authority and citizen freedom can be compatible."