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On Europe's Representation: A Symbolic Interpretation of Rejecting the Constitution

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 June 2008

Natascha Zowislo-Grünewald
Natascha Zowislo-Grünewald
Affiliation:
University of Bayreuth
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Extract

The lack of enthusiasm for the European Union and its proposed constitution among the European people surprised the political elite of Europe. Codifying common beliefs and values seemed to be a good way to represent the European identity in written form. The signing of the constitutional treaty should have become an important symbolic act, demonstrating the willingness of the people to bond together. Instead, a so-called Reform Treaty was passed in Lisbon in 2007 (to be ratified by all member states by 2009) that specifically abandoned any allusion to symbolic forms of European representation such as the term constitution, the flag, or a European anthem.

Type
Features
Information
PS: Political Science & Politics , Volume 41 , Issue 3 , July 2008 , pp. 551 - 555
Copyright
Copyright © The American Political Science Association 2008

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