The ties that bind

Canadian studies

Modern states - and novel multinational polities such as the European Union - have to contend with greater degrees, and more complex forms, of diversity. What elements keep complex, « post-national », political entities together ? What are the ties that bind people together in a world where they cannot rely on the safety of established national identifications (if they ever could) ?

This collection of essays by leading political scientists, philosophers and legal academics from Canada and Europe provides a transatlantic dialogue on the ways in which complex states (such as Canada) and non-states (the EU) may broach the modes of difference and diversity that confront them. Authors engage in insightful « diagnoses » of contemporary forms and modes of diversity, as well as critical appraisals of a number of normative responses meant to answer these challenges. These responses range from » reasonable accommodation » and multinationalism to cosmopolitanism. They include the recognition of « post-national », « multinational » or « deterritorialised » democracy and constitutional patriotism, as well as plural or « denationalised » citizenship.