States without Foundations
The Political Evolution of State and Society in the Arab East
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10075766 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Abbas Kelidar (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1993 |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 315-339 |
| Publication date | 1993-04-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Contemporary History (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0022-0094 • E-ISSN: 1461-7250 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/002200949302800206 |
| OpenAlex | W2020160507 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 2 |
The states of the Arab East -Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Jordanhave continued to have as precarious an existence as when they were created independent sovereign entities. Their stability and security, and even their survival, are challenged by forces from within and without. They have disappointed the expectations of the Great Powers whose machinations led to their creation; they have disappointed their rulers' ambitions for power and dominance, but above all they have failed to fulfil the political aspirations of their peoples. Although their political structure has become powerful and all-embracing, it has remained as alien and artificial as the boundaries drawn to demarcate their international frontiers. Their rejection by their peoples as well as their rulers has rendered the emergence of a political community with a single focus of loyalty and allegiance difficult, if not impossible. The conflicting demands of the various nationalist ideologies have prevented the development of a uniform political identity in heterogeneous societies. These states have been unable to provide a suitable framework for the resolution of domestic political conflicts. In the absence of a universally accepted basis for the rule of law, coercion and a frequent resort to violence rather than accommodation have become the norm in the resolution of political disputes as well as the means for the attainment and retention of political power. The concept of the nation-state is an ambiguous notion which does not lend itself to a simple and clear-cut definition.' Although closely associated to, it may be easily distinguished from the doctrine of nationalism and the idea of nationality. As a political doctrine, nationalism postulates that humanity is originally and naturally divided into nations, 'existing time out of mind', whose genius must
Allegiance · Doctrine · Ideology · Nationalism · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Sovereignty · State (computer science · Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies · Law
| Citations per year | 0.02 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 1970 - 1970 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |