Unconstrained Sovereignty: Delegation of Authority and Reversibility
Name
Unconstrained Sovereignty Delegation of Authority and Reversibility.pdf
Size
637.91 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
0a386640ac4714a4738f39eccfaf8333
Author(s)
Grinberg, Mariya
Date Issued
October 17, 2025
Journal
Critical Review
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Citation
Grinberg, M. (2025). Unconstrained Sovereignty: Delegation of Authority and Reversibility. Critical Review, 1–38.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
The concept of sovereignty shapes our understanding of the world. Yet our current understanding of sovereignty conflates delegation of authority with loss of sovereignty. Delegation is relatively cheap, quick, and leads to an assured outcome; it’s an affirmation of sovereignty. Use of force, however, is required to regain lost sovereignty. I propose a definition of sovereignty that draws a clear distinction between sovereignty and delegated authority. Adopting this definition shows that sovereignty applies across time and space, it is indivisible, institutions do not place permanent constraints on supreme authority, and popular sovereignty is not a well-grounded concept.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Political Science
Terms of Use
Creative Commons Attribution
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1080/08913811.2025.2555109
