A celebrated and much-discussed article by the distinguished English legal philosopher H.L.A. Hart entitled ‘Social Solidarity and the Enforcement of Morality’ (1967) presents a radically simplified account – a caricature, so to speak – of Émile Durkheim’s views on law and morality. Hart called this account ‘the disintegration thesis’ and identified the then eminent English judge, Lord Devlin, and Durkheim as proponents of this thesis. We here seek to set out the disintegration thesis as formulated by Hart and also his helpful suggestions for rendering it into a set of empirical claims. We dispute his attribution of this thesis to Durkheim and present an alternative account of Durkheim’s views about law and its relation to morality. The critique of Hart’s characterization of Durkheim helps to identify what is distinctive about Durkheim’s views and to explore various questions raised by Durkheim’s writings concerning the legal regulation of morality. We conclude by suggesting ways in which Durkheim’s answer is particularly relevant to our time.

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Policy Press uses environmentally responsible print partners Contents Acknowledgements iv Preface vi one Introduction to trends and concepts in British citizenship 1 two British citizenship and migration in stories 23 three A folkloric account of citizenship and belonging 37 four Myths and legends: stories of struggles and disappointment 77 five A few fairy tales? Stories of success six And they lived happily ever after? Some conclusions … Notes References Index III PrefaceBritishness, belonging and citizenship: Experiencing nationality law is a book about the lives of migrants who become British citizens (termed migrant-citizens for ease of reference in this book) drawn from their life stories. What do their experiences reveal about the links between citizenship and belonging? How does the process of applying for British citizenship affect those who make applications? How can the experience be improved for future applicants for British citizenship? Seeking to connect the sociological with the legal, the book presents some urgent considerations for reform.Most migrant-citizens migrated as strangers to this land and then resided for a long period of time to become British citizens. They exemplify 'the stranger' idealised by prolific sociological and philosophical thinker Georg Simmel (1971) in his eponymous essay. Simmel (1971, p 143) writes about the resident stranger as 'not … the wanderer who comes today and goes tomorrow, but rather as the person who comes today and stays tomorrow'. These strangers are relative newcomers to the land but are not transient visitors. They are successful in entering legally and fulfilling all requirements for acquiring citizenship over time.This book is a quest for untold stories. With the exception of research on citizenship ceremonies (for example, Byrne, 2014), there is little on record about the experiences of citizenship processes and the meaning of citizenship for those who successfully undertake the journey. Lawyers generally lose contact with successful applicants.

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