The Rise and Decline of the Notion of State
| DOI | 10.1177/019251218600700203 |
| Published date | 01 April 1986 |
| Author | Sabino Cassese |
| Date | 01 April 1986 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
120
THE
RISE
AND
DECLINE
OF
THE
NOTION OF
STATE
SABINO
CASSESE
The
evolution
of
the
use
of
the
concept
of
"state"
from
the
sixteenth
century
to
the
present
leads
one
to
observe
that
the
theory
of
the
state
has
now
lost
normative
and
prescriptive
value.
Furthermore,
the
very
notion
of
state
has
ceased
to
be
a
good
analytical
tool
in
that
the
function
of
government
has
evolved
toward
diffusion
rather
than
concentration.
The
state
is
no
longer
the
unifying
force
it
once
was.
Other
factors,
language
in
particular,
now
perform
the
unification
function
previously
performed
by
the
state.
THE
MEANING
OF
&dquo;STATE&dquo;
Since
1931,
when
145
usages
of
it
were
found,
the
word
&dquo;state,&dquo;’
like
all
terms
with
too
many
meanings,
has
ceased
to
distinguish
any
concept
useful for
purposes
of
study.
In
fact,
current
Italian
usage
demands
that
one
add
to
the
word
&dquo;state&dquo;
some
qualifying
noun:
state-government,
state-apparatus,
state-community.
Nevertheless,
&dquo;during
the
1960s
we
witnessed
a
rediscovery
of
the
state&dquo;’
which
perhaps
occurred
because-as
von
Beyme
(1985)
observes-‘ ‘we
need
some
broader
notion
of
’the
state’
(or
of
govern-
ment)
that
guides
interest
intermediation
without
falling
back
on
the
illusion
of
the
old
authoritarian
Obrigkeitsstaat
that
the
state
has
to
plan,
to
control
and
to
implement
everything.&dquo;
Another
reason
may
have
been
the
renewed
success
of
Marxist
theories
of
the
state,
although
these,
rather
than
analysing
the
state,
predict
its
crisis
and
dissolution
(Zolo,
1974;
Poulantzas,
1976;
Offe,
1977;
Carandini,
1977).
It
is
time,
then,
to
glance
over
the
history
of
the
concept
of
the
state,
to
note
reasons
for
its
success
and
for
its
decline,
and
to
give
some
thought
to
present
developments
in
government,
at
least
to
ask
if
the
movement
toward
diffusion
has
ceased
and
whether
there
are
signs
of
a
tendency
toward
a
new
concentration.
The
rest
of
this
ar-
ticle
aims
to
deal
with
these
two
themes.
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