Nostalgia for the Strong State: Representations of the Former Regime in the Tunisian Social Imagination in Times of Crisis
Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences of Sfax, Tunisia
Abstract
More than a decade after the Tunisian revolution, amid deepening crises and disillusionment with democracy, a significant social phenomenon has emerged: nostalgia for a “strong state.” This sentiment does not reflect an objective reassessment of the authoritarian past, but rather a symbolic and emotional reconstruction shaped by present-day failures. As the state’s ability to ensure stability and dignity declines, many citizens increasingly view the former regime not as a dictatorship, but as an efficient and orderly authority.
Based on 30 in-depth interviews, this study examines how the former regime is reconstituted in the collective imagination. Respondents express a pragmatic conception of the state, where legitimacy is measured not by democratic participation or individual rights, but by the ability to deliver essential services, maintain order, and meet basic needs. Within this framework, authoritarianism is tolerated—along with corruption and repression—so long as it guarantees security and subsistence.
Drawing on the theories of social representations (Moscovici and Abric) and political nostalgia, the analysis reveals a shift in the meaning of citizenship: from a participatory, rights-based model to a clientelist relationship in which freedoms are exchanged for survival. This symbolic return to authoritarianism is not a call for dictatorship, but an expression of profound disappointment with the democratic project and a collective yearning for a functional state. It ultimately reflects a broader crisis of confidence in the future.
Keywords:
Political Nostalgia, Strong State, Social Representations, Post-Revolution, Democratic TransitionCopyright Notice & License:
All articles published in Global Review of Humanities, Arts, and Society (GRHAS) are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
This license allows anyone to share, copy, distribute, transmit, and adapt the work, including for commercial purposes, provided that proper attribution is given to the original author(s) and the source.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
PDF Downloads
Journal Info
How to Cite
References
Abric, J.-C. (1994). L'organisation interne des représentations sociales. In J.-C. Abric (Ed.), Pratiques sociales et représentations. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.
Abderrahim, H. (2008). Political clientelism: Mechanisms of domination and social control. Casablanca: Afrique Orient.
Agamben, G. (1998). Homo Sacer: Sovereign power and bare life (D. Heller-Roazen, Trans.). Stanford University Press.
Al-Jabri, M. A. (1994). Democracy and human rights. Beirut: Center for Arab Unity Studies.
Dobry, M. (1986). Sociologie des crises politiques: La dynamique des mobilisations multisectorielles. Paris: Presses de la Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques.
Hibou, B. (2006). La force de l’obéissance: Économie politique de la répression en Tunisie. Paris: La Découverte.
Hobsbawm, E. (1990). Nations and nationalism since 1780: Programme, myth, reality. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Klicperová-Baker, M., Feierabend, I. K., & Hofstetter, C. R. (1997). In the search for a post-communist syndrome: A theoretical framework and empirical assessment. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 7(1), 39–52.
Linz, J. J., & Stepan, A. (1996). Problems of democratic transition and consolidation: Southern Europe, South America, and post-communist Europe. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Mény, Y., & Surel, Y. (2002). Democracies and the populist challenge. Palgrave Macmillan.
