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Author Marshall, Catherine, 1973- author.

Title Political deference in a democratic age : British politics and the constitution from the eighteenth century to Brexit / Catherine Marshall
Published Cham, Switzerland : Palgrave Macmillan, [2021]

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Description 1 online resource (x, 354 pages) : illustration
Contents Introduction: Why 'Deference'? -- Part I: Theory of Deference from the Eighteenth Century to 1911--Definitions in Context. The Constitution of Political Deference ; Deference and the Politics of Notables ; Walter Bagehot, The 'Darwin of Deference' ; The Dilemma(s) of Voluntary Deference in the Fin de Siècle -- Part II: The Practice of Deference in a Democratic Age--A User's Guide. The Challenges to Voluntary Deference (1911-1945) ; Voluntary Deference in Crisis (1945-1972) ; The Rejection of Rational deference (1973-1997) ; The 'Afterlife' of Deference (1997-2016) ; Conclusion: Deference for the Democratic Age
Summary This book explores the concept of deference as used by historians and political scientists. Often confused and judged to be outdated, it shows how deference remains central to understanding British politics to the present day. This study aims to make sense of how political deference has functioned in different periods and how it has played a crucial role in legitimising British politics. It shows how deference sustained what are essentially English institutions, those which dominated the Union well into the second half of the twentieth century until the post-1997 constitutional transformations under New Labour. While many dismiss political and institutional deference as having died out, this book argues that a number of recent political decisions including the vote in favour of Brexit in June 2016 are the result of a deferential way of thinking that has persisted through the democratic changes of the twentieth century. Combining close readings of theoretical texts with analyses of specific legal changes and historical events, the book charts the development of deference from the eighteenth century through to the present day. Rather than offering a comprehensive history of deference, it picks out key moments that show the changing nature of deference, both as a concept and as a political force. Catherine Marshall is Professor of British Studies at CY Cergy Paris Universite, France. Her research focuses mainly on the history of ideas in mid-Victorian England and the legacy of some of those ideas on twentieth and twenty-first century Britain. She teaches British history and the history of political ideas
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index
Notes Online resource; title from PDF title page (SpringerLink, viewed March 8, 2021)
Subject Respect -- Political aspects
Politics and government
SUBJECT Great Britain -- Politics and government -- 1485- http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85056884
Subject Great Britain
Form Electronic book
ISBN 9783030625399
3030625397