The Single Currency and European Citizenship : Unveiling the Other Side of The Coin

"Established in 2002, the Euro is now the currency of 17 countries used by over 335 million people daily. Although the single currency is much discussed in terms of macroeconomics and global finances, policymakers rarely address its impact on European citizenship in social, cultural, political, and everyday life economics terms. This hidden side of the single currency is the focus of the essays, which use various approaches, from economic history and political sociology to citizenship and legitimacy, to reveal the connections between the Euro and European citizenship. This timely contribution by renowned experts provides a greater understanding of the Euro at a time when it is not clear whether it should be celebrated or commemorated, and looks into aspects of the single currency that are the base of the social trust that supports it and that is at stake in the present crisis. It will be an essential tool to anyone studying the political, social, and economic development of the E.U."--Bloomsbury Publishing. Title page Copyright page Contents Acknowledgments List of Figures and Tables Introduction Part I Multiple Links between Single Currency and European Citizenship Chapter 1 Building citizenship in the post-modern Era: Dimensions of the other side of the coin1 Introduction Defining the dimensions of the other side of the coin Conclusions Notes Chapter 2 Imaginary Europe: The euro as a symbol and practice Introduction Imagined communities and European citizenship Navigating the nation-state: Localizing Europe Is it enough? The future of European integration Note Chapter 3 The only wealth are human beings: Currency between economy and citizenship Money as economic variable: A short review of literature The socio-anthropological aspects of money Conclusions Notes Chapter 4 Trust in the euro: The single currency as social construction of an institutional fact Social construction and the literature on European monetary integration Money as a social construction Money as a social relation Trust Notes Chapter 5 Forgotten dimensions: The euro in scientific and policy literature Investigating the noneconomic side of the euro The implementation of the research3 Main results Concluding remarks Notes Part II The Single Currency and the Construction of European Identity Chapter 6 The unintended “Litmus Test”: The euro as a factor of center-formation, trust enhancement, and identity building1 Introduction Center, individuals, and currency In search of trust We can’t help being European? Identity and legitimacy at stake Back to the center, in case we need it Notes Chapter 7 Two sides of the same coin? The euro and Europeanization of collective identities European identity and the introduction of the euro Effects of the euro on the Europeanization of identities Conclusions Notes Chapter 8 Why money can’t buy democracy: On the detachment of the euro from EU citizenship1 The democratic deficit and the Treaty of Lisbon The link between democracy and citizenship Public expectations versus public opinions on the euro Balancing stakes of national political survival against the political capacity to act Have alternative strategies become inevitable—or are the Estonians crazy? The rationality of decoupling and the threatening irrationality of failing to recouple the two sides of the coin Notes Chapter 9 Representation of identity: Euro and dollar as identity builders Representations and symbolisms within collective and national identities Representations of identity and the euro The creation of a European identity Conclusions Part III European Citizenship in the Euro Turmoil Chapter 10 In the light and shadow of the Single Currency: European identity and citizenship Bright lights and dark shadows of the single currency The euro and identity The euro and citizenship Conclusions Chapter 11 Divided by a common currency: The euro crisis and European citizenship The euro 2001—11: Celebration of commemoration? Money and social solidarity: The euro’s role in European construction The other side(s) of the coin The euro as a symbol: Anthropological perspectives Symbolizing Europe: The semiotics of the single currency revisited The euro crisis and European identity Future of the Eurozone: Breakup or closer federation? Notes Chapter 12 Between natural and moral order of things: The euro and the problem of agency A complex economic, political, and cultural crisis The problem of agency of a European political leadership and a European demos A view from below: Reasons and sentiments behind the Spaniards’ attachment to the euro Fourteen years later: A major crisis, and a chastened but resilient, faithful public Notes Chapter 13 Between illusion and disillusion: Public opinion facing the euro crisis Introduction Before monetary unification European public opinion between 2003 and 2011 The sense of belonging to the European Union What Europe means to its citizens The euro and the economic crisis Europe and euro between illusion and disillusion Notes Chapter 14 Back to the future? The euro and the EU silent constitution building Introduction A mistaken constitutional moment? The constitutional importance of monetary unification Conclusions: The way forward Lessons learned Research tracks Policy measures European union document