Thirteen theses on national dysfunction - Portugal in the international system

Abstract

This article analyses the links between Portugal and the outside world in the contemporary era, taking a critical stance in relation to the prevailing ideas of «secular dependence» on, and «backwardness imported» from abroad. The article identifies the elements of dysfunction in the international system which is studied in all its multifaceted characteristics and commented on as to its causes and mode of functioning. It also investigates the way in which dysfunction is reflected in the internal evolution of Portugal and the impact it has had on the forming of contemporary society. Dysfunction is an essential factor in understanding basic elements of the development of Portugal in the last two centuries - from the process of the great political, economic and social transitions to the role of the military, and to the development of social elite groups, the evolution of mentalities, the way in which the institutions function and the process of technical and organisational innovation. The article takes the form of thirteen theses, each of them treating, in a very condensed and simplified way, an important mechanism or characteristic of the mechanism of dysfunction, which proves to be a central operative concept for understanding contemporary Portugal. The study reflects a very different view to that which is normally held as to the role of a small state in the international system and the way in which its international links condition its own evolution, creating a zone of interaction where the external and the internal are inseparable, even though appearances may be to the contrary.