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Pluralism
Rule of law is the political concept that the law applies equally to everyone, including elites and government officials. The rule of law is an important check on abuses of power, and it promotes inclusive institutions.
Rule of Law Quotes in Why Nations Fail
The Why Nations Fail quotes below are all either spoken by Rule of Law or refer to Rule of Law. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 10 Quotes
The leaders of the French Revolution and, subsequently, Napoleon exported the revolution to these lands, destroying absolutism, ending feudal land relations, abolishing guilds, and imposing equality before the law—the all-important notion of rule of law, which we will discuss in greater detail in the next chapter. The French Revolution thus prepared not only France but much of the rest of Europe for inclusive institutions and the economic growth that these would spur.
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The Glorious Revolution and the French Revolution built some of the world’s first inclusive institutions. But similar revolutions didn’t occur across the rest of Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries. Instead, most of Western Europe built inclusive institutions when the French army invaded them and abolished their feudal monarchies. Some of these territories eventually formed inclusive, republican governments. This unconventional series of events exemplifies Acemoglu and Robinson’s theory of institutional change. The French Revolution was possible because of certain key differences between the French monarchy and other similar monarchies throughout Europe. (Most importantly, the king had to call an Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Mole
Chapter 11 Quotes
The rule of law is not imaginable under absolutist political institutions. It is a creation of pluralist political institutions and of the broad coalitions that support such pluralism. It’s only when many individuals and groups have a say in decisions, and the political power to have a seat at the table, that the idea that they should all be treated fairly starts making sense. By the early eighteenth century, Britain was becoming sufficiently pluralistic, and the Whig elites would discover that, as enshrined in the notion of the rule of law, laws and institutions would constrain them, too.
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Acemoglu and Robinson emphasize that the economic hierarchy of nations that formed after the Industrial Revolution has basically remained unchanged in the 21st century. In Chapter 11 and Chapter 12, they ask why rich countries have largely stayed rich and poor countries have largely stayed poor. The answer, they suggest, is that both inclusive and extractive institutions tend to reinforce themselves over time, which leads countries to stick with similar economic models and achieve relatively consistent levels of growth. The authors argue that the rule of law—the principle that the law applies to everyone equally—is one of the most important Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi quia ea. Quia soluta itaque. Deleniti nisi earum. Ad tenetur laboriosam. Eum accusamus harum. Accusantium iusto voluptas. Totam quae corporis.
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Rule of Law Term Timeline in Why Nations Fail
The timeline below shows where the term Rule of Law appears in Why Nations Fail. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 10: The Diffusion of Prosperity
...these places, the French army abolished serfdom, ended the clergy and guilds’ privileges, and established rule of law . After taking control of France, Napoleon advanced these same interests. After his defeat, some...
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Chapter 11: The Virtuous Circle
...had changed: the powerful couldn’t use the courts as a weapon anymore. Instead, there was rule of law —meaning that the laws applied equally to everyone.
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The Glorious Revolution built the rule of law in England. It meant the Whigs couldn’t pass laws that violated citizens’ fundamental rights. But...
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...tend to survive over time: most groups can’t participate in politics without pluralism and the rule of law , so few are willing to threaten them. Moreover, as institutions become more inclusive, societies...
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...like they did throughout British colonies. Elites knew that choosing repression would mean abandoning the rule of law , pluralism, and inclusive economic institutions. They also knew that repression would probably fail, because...
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...positive feedback cycle. Such institutions make it difficult for leaders to concentrate power. Meanwhile, the rule of law prevents some groups from using the law as a weapon against others and gradually leads...
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