European Civil Society’s Conundrum: Public Spheres, Identities and the Challenge of Politicisation

ABSTRACT: This work draws upon the novel theoretical framework of European civil society which is based on the complementary concept of civil society. It claims that relations between the Europeanised public spheres, political identities and the politicisation of the EU present an intricate and crucial conundrum of the European civil society. While applying such a theoretical framework this work interprets the Europeanisation of identities, public spheres and national polities as mutually reflexive processes. The well-respected concept of positive identity (Erikson) and the civil code of collective identity (Shils) are deployed in order to understand dynamics between the public sphere and identities trans/formations. Finally, the concept of active border is introduced as the key component of the European civil society, and as a vital nexus within the conceptual cluster of identity, the public sphere and the Europeanisation.

KEYWORDS: European civil society, European public sphere, European identity, Europeanisation, active border, EU