The Politics of Italy: Governance in a Normal Country

This new textbook analyses Italian politics using the theories and concepts of comparative politics. Though clearly an advanced liberal democracy, Italy is often regarded as an anomaly, frequently described in terms of 'crisis', 'instability' and 'alienation'. Is such a perspective correct? Or, as is increasingly argued, is Italy's political system better understood as being on a par with other democracies, displaying a specific combination of institutional, cultural and historical features common to all such countries? Containing aids to the student such as questions and guides to further reading, this is an accessible introduction to the politics of Italy.