A köztársaság-fogalom értelmezésének szintjei Franciaországban
Levels of the Interpretation of the Concept of the Republic in France

Summary/Abstract: Nowhere else do politicians and citizens refer as much to the notion of „republic” as in France, where its existence, non-existence and its quality seem to be a cornerstone problem of post-revolution political history. The word republic is a polysemic one. In France, for instance, it can refer to the contrast of monarchy, but also to the concrete system of government of the Fifth Republic. It can also refer to a special normative idea developed in France. The latter normative notion covers concrete values like the republican conception of (financial) solidarity, democracy itself, the radical separation of the church and the state, or the free and obligatory education system. However, the idea and its practical realization is disputable precisely due to its inherent normativity – on the other hand, critics often face the wrath of the republican elite in the form of the „republican refl ex”. This study aims to distinguish and explain these different usages of the word “republic” in the French context, even if the French themselves seldom do this exercise.

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