The Improvised State
Sovereignty, Performance and Agency in Dayton Bosnia
Published on 23. July 2012
224 pages
978-1-118-27880-2 (ISBN)
Description
The Improvised State provides a highly developed account of the nature and outcomes of Bosnian state practices since the Dayton Peace Agreement. Jeffrey presents new and significant theories, based on extensive fieldwork in Bosnia, which advance understanding of state building.
* Provides a major contribution to recent academic debates as to the nature of the state after violent conflict, and offers invaluable insights into state building
* Introduces the idea of state improvisation, where improvisation refers to a process of both performance and resourcefulness
* Uses the theoretical framework of Pierre Bourdieu to explore how powerful agencies have attempted to present a coherent vision of Bosnia and Herzegovina following the conflict 1992-5
* Advances our understanding of the Bosnian state by focusing on the practices of statecraft fostered in the post-Dayton era
* Research based on four periods of residential fieldwork in Bosnia, which allowed a detailed analysis of political practices in the country
Reviews / Votes
"I really enjoyed the book. It provides anempirically-rich, methodology-cally-rigorous andconceptually-grounded account of the state 'in action'.It should prove to be essential reading for all those socialscientists interested in the state but will also provideinspiration for all those interested in political geography,understandings of power and notions of performance." (Cultural Geographies, 27 December 2013) "It provides an empirically-rich,methodologically-rigorous and conceptually-grounded account of thestate 'in action'. It should prove to be essentialreading for all those social scientists interested in the state butwill also provide inspiration for all those interested in politicalgeography, understandings of power and notions ofperformance." Professor Rhys Jones, AberystwythUniversity, UK (Cultural Geographies, January 2014, vol. 21 no.1 165-166) "Consistently strong throughout its sections and chapters,Jeffrey has cemented his arguments with a good conceptualunderstanding, impressive fieldwork and primary research. TheImprovised State is an original contribution to both thetheoretical and research fields of political geography and criticalinternational relations scholarship." David Campbell, HonoraryProfessor, Durham University and University of Queensland "In this persuasive book, Alex Jeffrey illuminates the centralrole of performance in the production of state power anddemonstrates in fascinating detail why and how this is so --and with what effects. The argument is thoroughly researched,contextually sensitive, and crisply written. The ImprovisedState is a compelling study for scholars, students, andpractitioners working on state power, international organizations,and post-conflict societies, in Europe and elsewhere." MerjeKuus, University of British ColumbiaMore details
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Person
Alex Jeffrey is a University Lecturer in HumanGeography at the University of Cambridge. His research has focusedon the governance of post-conflict environments, particularly theformer Yugoslavia, and the role of non-governmental organizationsin fostering democracy. He is co-author, together with Joe Painter,of Political Geography: An Introduction to Space andPower (2009) and with Anoop Nayak on GeographicalThought: An Introduction to Ideas in HumanGeography (2011).
Content
List of Figures ix
Series Editors' Preface x
Acknowledgements xi
Abbreviations xiii
1 Introduction 1
1.1 States, Performance and Improvisation 4
1.2 Towards a Political Anthropology of the Bosnian State 7
1.3 Critical Geopolitics and Qualitative Research Strategy13
1.4 Structure of the Book 16
2 The Improvised State 20
2.1 The State Idea 22
2.2 Performance and Performativity 26
2.3 Improvisation: Performed Resourcefulness 32
2.4 Improvising the State 38
3 Producing Bosnia and Herzegovina 41
3.1 Fault Line 44
3.2 Barrier 50
3.3 The Balkan Vortex 62
3.4 The General Framework Agreement for Peace 67
3.5 Conclusion 70
4 Performing Brèko District 72
4.1 Brèko District and Arbitration 75
4.2 Stability: Getting the Job Done 85
4.3 Security: Constructing Legality 91
4.4 Neutralization: Making People Think 97
4.5 Conclusion 102
5 Gentrifying Civil Society 107
5.1 Building Civil Society 111
5.2 Social Capital: The Autonomy of Civil Society 115
5.3 Cultural Capital: 'Don ' t Just Ask for AnotherCopy Machine!' 118
5.4 Beyond Gentrified Civil Society: Roma and Mjesne Zajednice123
5.5 Conclusion 129
6 Enacting Justice 132
6.1 Spaces of Justice 134
6.2 Contesting the State 139
6.3 Enrolling Civil Society 145
6.4 Conclusion 153
7 Becoming European 156
7.1 Europeanization and the State 158
7.2 Nested Balkanism 162
7.3 Conclusion 166
8 Conclusion 169
References 179
Index 197
