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10 - The Metamorphoses of a Nation-State (from 1945 to the Present Day)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 March 2023

Guy Vanthemsche
Affiliation:
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Roger De Peuter
Affiliation:
Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Emeritus
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Summary

Among the many buildings that attract the tourist’s attention in Brussels, the Law Courts (Palais de Justice) is, one might say, the star of the show. The work of the architect Joseph Poelaert, referred to in Chapter 8, dominates the urban landscape. Its colossal size and labyrinthine structure perfectly symbolize the Kafkaesque aspects of the legal system. But this building may also inspire other metaphors. Restoration and development works have been going on for decades. Some of the scaffolding has even rusted and become impossible to dismantle; paradoxically, it has, as it were, become part of the whole. Furthermore, the functionality of this stone colossus has been called into question. Is it still adapted to current needs? Should it not be abandoned altogether?

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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