Comparative Constitutional Studies

Günter Frankenberg, Emeritus Professor of Public Law, Philosophy of Law and Comparative Law, Institute for Public Law, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Germany

'This well-written study confirms Gunter Frankenberg's position as one of the most astute and subtle students of the methodology of comparative constitutional law. His emphasis on constitutional law as narrative, and his attention to ''other'' constitutions, not part of the field's canon, are important contributions.'--Mark Tushnet, Harvard Law School, US'Gunter Frankenberg is one of the most influential and original authors in the study of comparative constitutionalism, and this is his main contribution in the matter. Comparative Constitutional Studies is an intelligent, informed and profound book, which is called to become a must read for students and professionals in the area.'--Roberto Gargarella, Torcuato Di Tella University, Argentina'The here presented study opens our eyes to the actual histories and experiences of which constitutional texts are merely one embodiment. Shifting between the actors/voices/interests involved in constitutional design, on the one hand, and the constitutional documents on the other, Professor Frankenberg illuminates the dynamics of constitutionalism as part of locally situated and shaped, yet globally interacting societal processes. Integrating the history and theory of political ideas, the study of socio-economic transformation and the merits of anthropological ethnography, constitutionalism unfolds as a crucial dimension of social, political and legal change. This is the stuff that legal analysis should be and, here, is made of.'--Peer Zumbansen, King's College London, UK

• Contents: Preface 1. Constitutions: Between Magic and Deceit PART I Theory and Method 2. Constitutional Idiom and Design 3. Comparing Constitutions: Theory and Method PART II History and Transfer 4. Constitutional Transfer and Experimentalism 5. Constitutional Experimentalism in Nineteenth-Century Europe PART III Constitution as Order 6. Order from Conflict 7. Constituting Against Partition and Fragmentation 8. Constituting States of Exception Epilogue Index