Activity

正Monologues Revel’s World of Shakespeare Date:September 5-6,2014Place:Wuhan Zhongnan Theater Price:RMB 80/120/180/260The six-year-old boy Graves is introduced to Shakespeare at the demand of his brilliant,though drunkard teacher Mr.Revel,the principal of a school for boys in England.After a period of confusion,Graves began to understand Shakespeare and the world of Mr.Revel.The monologue is written,directed and played by American drama director and expert on Shakespeare Joseph Graves.He is currently the artistic director of Peking University’s Institute of World Theatre and Film.     

Dying Quietly: English Suburbs and the Stiff Upper Lip

The English suburbs are dying. Years of austerity have slowly changed the landscape. Poverty is now common in the suburbs. Since 2014, life expectancy has been falling across most of England, especially in the suburbs. Now infant mortality rates are also rising year on year (unlike anywhere else in Europe). In hindsight it is not surprising that the majority of suburban English people voted Brexit, most noticeably in the Home Counties. Middle England is understandably angry. No more fortitude in the face of adversity and the hiding of emotions. The stiff up lip has slipped. Change is in the air.     

Who's European? Scotland and England Compared

In the Brexit referendum in 2016, Scotland voted 62 per cent Remain, and England 53 per cent Leave. This article explores whether this came about because more people in Scotland considered themselves ‘strongly European’ compared with people in England. Analysis of Scottish and British Social Attitudes survey data for 2017 shows that people in Scotland are significantly more inclined to say they are ‘strongly European’ (45 per cent) than in England (34 per cent), a finding that holds true across the spectrum of socio‐demographic and political variables. Nevertheless, the key predictors of being strongly European are similar in both countries: having liberal values, high levels of education, political party support, as well as being British, while in Scotland supporting the Scottish National Party and being in favour of independence are important. ‘Being European’ has taken on different meanings in Scotland and England as the aftermath of the Brexit referendum works its way through the political process.     

是君主喜好还是元首决定具有法律效力——对元首制时期和优士丁尼时代罗马宪政的考察

本文以对Quod principi placuit,legis habet vigorem的正确翻译为起点,还原了帝政分权时期元首与元老院分权、共治的宪政局面,批驳了罗马无宪法论以及私法巨人、公法矮子论,揭示了某些英语世界的作家故意误译上述拉丁短语以彰显英国宪政优越论的阴谋,展示了短语作者乌尔比安的思想体系中的宪政倾向,对延长西方宪政史的时间链条具有特别的意义。     

The Malthusian intermezzo: Women's wages and human capital formation between the late Middle Ages and the demographic transition of the 19th century

The paper offers a new explanation for ‘the great conundrum’, the acceleration of population growth in England in the second half of the 18th century. It is argued that it was not only population growth that was ‘different’ in England, but the stagnation of the rise of literacy and of human capital in general, seems to be an anomaly of this period. This ‘conundrum’ has been explained in the following way. It is demonstrated that in England the gender wage gap increased a lot during the early modern period, which was caused by: (a) the switch from post Black Death labour scarcity to labour surplus, which in particular harmed the economic position of women, and (b) changes in the structure of agriculture, leading to the rise of large-scale, capital intensive and labour extensive farms, which had a very limited demand for female (wage) labour. This is also suggested by the fact that on the Continent (in the Netherlands) a much smaller decline of female wages occurred, because there family farms continued to be quite important. Moreover, the decline of English wages had important effects on its demographic development. It helps to explain the decline of the average age of marriage of in particular women between 1600 and 1800, and the related increase in fertility that occurred in this period — resulting in a much faster rate of population growth after 1750 than elsewhere in Western-Europe. It also helps to explain the stagnation in human capital formation that occurred during the 18th and early 19th century — again a feature peculiar for the English development in these years. The explanation of ‘the great conundrum’ is therefore intimately linked to the changing position of women on the labour market and within marriage.     

英国的司法审查之诉

司法审查虽然只是英国公民权利救济体系中的一部分,但却是日益重要和专门化的司法救济手段。作为普通法国家,英国司法审查之诉在审判组织及管辖、司法审查范围、司法审查理由、当事人、证据、审理程序、救济方式及裁判种类等方面均有着自身的特点,其中不乏值得我们学习和思考的经验。     

Excellence at What Cost? Austerity and the Reform of the School System in England (2010–2016)

The reform of the school system, which has been conducted by the Coalition and Conservative governments since 2010, has largely been austerity‐driven. In spite of the governments’ pledge to protect their budgets, schools have been severely hit by spending cuts. The reform programme has itself been integral to the fiscal consolidation plans by promoting a more cost‐effective system of state schooling. This article discusses the relationship between austerity and reform, and looks at the consequences for the concept of public service. Some specific aspects of the new institutional framework are examined, especially the creation of an independent state sector made up of academies and free schools, which has entrenched the involvement of private sector firms in education. The overhaul of the school system, which started nearly thirty years ago, has now reached a new decisive stage. However, considering the complex relationship between multiple actors and the opposing forces at work, one cannot say with any certainty that it will cause the demise of public service state education.     

Variants of transparency: an analysis of the English Local Government Transparency Code 2015

Transparency policies and initiatives at the local level have expanded around the world but our academic understanding is still limited. Few studies have systematically analysed transparency practices at the local government level. This paper develops an analytical framework to examine local government transparency practices based on the literature. The framework is used to analyse the English Local Government Transparency Code 2015. The study shows that the Code delivers openness to a partial extent but has not yet met all criteria for transparent practices. The findings could contribute to the development and improvement of transparency practices at local governments.     

论英国警察讯问较的发展

英国警察最初与普通公民一样，基本上不具有对犯罪嫌疑人的讯问权。司法判例以及20世纪前期发展的法官规则认可了事实上存在的警察讯问权并确立了基本的适用规则。由普通法调整的状况持续到20世纪80年代，制定法在规范警察讯问程序的同时也在一定程度上对公民的沉默权予以限制。警察讯问权总体上不断扩张，在这个过程中，普通法和制定法都努力保持警察侦查权与公民权利之间的平衡。     

革命者与立法者之间：新英格兰乡镇的政治学理

美利坚独立革命的烽火首先从乡镇（波士顿、康科德、莱克星顿）点燃，并在乡镇联合行动中逐步形成燎原之势。1780年，在麻萨诸塞，新的邦宪条款的制定可以说是参加制宪大会（convention）的代表与他们各自所代表的乡镇民众不断讨论斟酌的结果，其中大、小乡镇之间围绕邦议会代表权、行政职位的设置、司法权的地位、邦与各乡镇之关系等现实议题的争论正是七年后费城合众国立宪大会的现实依据和学理基础。在丹尼尔·谢斯（Daniel Shays）及其率领的自耕农（Regulators）看来，麻萨诸塞政府已经成为东部商业利益集团谋取私利的工具，设在波士顿的新政府日趋脱离人民，走向专制，为此人民有责任揭竿而起，驱逐渡士顿的权力精英，捍卫《独立宣言》的基本原则；同样，在南、北战争前夕的南部种植园主看来，联邦政府已被以林肯及其共和党代表的东北部利益集团所操控，美利坚国家的立国原则遭到破坏，而南部“美利坚联众国”（the Confederate States of America）的使命正是意在捍卫美利坚国父们的立国精神。为此，对乡镇的历史考察和现实观照无疑是推进我们理解当代美国政治和美利坚政治文化的关键环节，本文正是这一努力的初步尝试。