The functions of government and the nature of laws
Abstract
This book, when originally conceived, was part of a much larger plan. I began some time ago to analyse the functions of government in the international society. I wanted to demonstrate that the problem of government in that society is the same as it is within States. In the international as in the national sphere, the effective performance of any one of the functions of government depends upon the effective performance of each of the other functions. There can be no effective supra-national or world government, and hence no real international order, until all the processes or functions of government have been organized and institutionalized in the international sphere as they have been within States. Before analyzing the four functions of government in the international society, however, it seemed desirable to analyze them as they operated in more highly developed societies. This would throw strong light on the inadequacies of existing international organization and provide criteria for assessing the degree to which the world society has nevertheless been organized. It would also indicate the steps that must be taken if world government is to be achieved [...]