Political legitimacy and modus vivendi

Anno LIII, n. 222, maggio-agosto 2018

Here I take up one aspect of a political theory of modus vivendi by seeking to explore its relationship to questions of political legitimacy. In doing so, I begin by setting out my preferred conception of modus vivendi and addressing some of the problems to which it seems to give rise, without claiming to have resolved them. I then explain how I understand the idea of political legitimacy, which gives a central place to the beliefs and values operative in a particular polity. Finally, I briefly sketch how the aforementioned conception of modus vivendi can be helpful in grounding that understanding of political legitimacy.