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Legitimation and the Masses

Björkling, Simon LU (2015) STVM25 20151
Department of Political Science
Abstract
No state can do very well without perceived as legitimate. While the state’s efforts to legitimate its power is well covered in the literature, the ordinary people’s role in legitimacy is less investigated. This study is informed by the notion that legitimacy is a relational concept. Legitimacy is created in the interaction between ruler and ruled. The power structure is dependent on the people’s active legitimation. The early years of the Cultural Revolution serves as example how popular legitimation works in a context of Chinese socialism. By analysing the consumer culture that has arisen recently around the territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas, I argue that political consumerism has become a new mode for legitimating... (More)
No state can do very well without perceived as legitimate. While the state’s efforts to legitimate its power is well covered in the literature, the ordinary people’s role in legitimacy is less investigated. This study is informed by the notion that legitimacy is a relational concept. Legitimacy is created in the interaction between ruler and ruled. The power structure is dependent on the people’s active legitimation. The early years of the Cultural Revolution serves as example how popular legitimation works in a context of Chinese socialism. By analysing the consumer culture that has arisen recently around the territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas, I argue that political consumerism has become a new mode for legitimating the Chinese political system for ordinary citizens. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Björkling, Simon LU
supervisor
organization
course
STVM25 20151
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Legitimacy, Beetham, Cultural Revolution, territorial disputes, Diaoyu/Senkaku
language
English
id
5426093
date added to LUP
2015-07-13 11:47:47
date last changed
2015-07-13 11:47:47
@misc{5426093,
  abstract     = {{No state can do very well without perceived as legitimate. While the state’s efforts to legitimate its power is well covered in the literature, the ordinary people’s role in legitimacy is less investigated. This study is informed by the notion that legitimacy is a relational concept. Legitimacy is created in the interaction between ruler and ruled. The power structure is dependent on the people’s active legitimation. The early years of the Cultural Revolution serves as example how popular legitimation works in a context of Chinese socialism. By analysing the consumer culture that has arisen recently around the territorial disputes in the East and South China Seas, I argue that political consumerism has become a new mode for legitimating the Chinese political system for ordinary citizens.}},
  author       = {{Björkling, Simon}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Legitimation and the Masses}},
  year         = {{2015}},
}