Interpreting Brexit: Reimagining Political Traditions

Description

This volume examines the impact of Brexit on political traditions such as nationalism, liberalism and conservatism, cosmopolitanism and decentralization. Bringing together scholars of British  Politics, the chapters focus on the following topics: Brexit and the myth of British National identity since World War II; the evolution of discourses surrounding Brexit and the broader shifts in the character of British liberal and conservative traditions; how the phenomenon of Brexit has decentered the Labour Party’s ideational tradition; the expression of beliefs about Brexit and British foreign policy; the ‘identity effects’ of Brexit on unionism and nationalism in Northern Ireland; whether the UK require a more decentred local government at a community level in order for people to feel both represented, and able to participate. Contents 1 Brexit and the Myth of British National Identity Abstract Introduction National identities, histories, and traditions Brexit, national identity, and decolonization Political parties, intellectual traditions, and the crisis of liberal democracy Conclusion: Decentering the Nation(s) References 2 Political community and the new parochialism: Brexit and the reimagination of British liberalism and conservatism Abstract Reimaging Community: Brexit and the political reactivation of collectivist political traditions The dilemmas of Brexit and the reconfiguration of British liberalism and conservatism Conclusion: Brexit and the new parochialism References 3 Brexit and the Labour Party: Europe, cosmopolitanism and the narrowing of traditions Abstract Introduction Labour and the European project Labour and the reimagining of the Euro-enthusiast tradition Cosmopolitanism Labour and the reimagining of the Euro-sceptic tradition Conservatism Conclusion References 4 The dilemma of Brexit: hard choices in the narrow context of British foreign policy traditions Abstract Introduction Interpretivism Making sense of Brexit: academic commentary The First EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate Conclusion References 5 Ironic inversions and stable purposes: reimagining political traditions in Ireland after the EU Referendum 2016 Abstract Introduction The conflict The 1998 Agreement The 2016 Referendum Some ironical inversions of argument New ideas and old purposes Conclusions and the dilemma for political traditions References 6 The deep story of Leave voters affective assemblages: implications for political decentralisation in the UK Abstract Introduction English nationalism, British pluralist traditions, and the vote to leave the EU The deep story of Leave voters assembled historical traditions Research methods Leave voters affective assemblages The Leave ‘deep story’, inherited traditions, and devolution Conclusion References