Dr Marietta van der Tol reflects on constitutionalism beyond legal texts in shortlisted prize series
A new blog post by Dr Marietta van der Tol, Assistant Research Professor and Landecker Lecturer at the University of Cambridge, has been featured as part of a symposium showcasing nominees for the ICON•S Book Prize. In her contribution, Constitutional Intolerance: going beyond the "written stuff", Van der Tol reflects on how constitutional scholarship can move beyond formal legal texts to better understand political realities.
The post opens with a striking anecdote from the United States, recounting how, in the aftermath of a presidential election, an airport worker expressed distress at political divisions, urging her to tell students “we’re not all like that”. The moment underscores Van der Tol’s central argument: that legal scholarship must attend to lived experience as well as written sources.
Drawing on fieldwork across Europe, van der Tol highlights the methodological challenges of such an approach, including the difficulty of learning languages and navigating biased or partial information. She describes language itself as a “strategic gatekeeper to knowledge”, noting how reliance on English-language materials can skew perspectives.
The blog builds on her prize-nominated book Constitutional Intolerance, which examines how right-wing movements have influenced constitutionalism and the treatment of minorities. She argues that illiberalism is not only embedded in constitutional texts, but can also emerge through subtle shifts in interpretation, allowing it to “fly under the radar”.
Reflecting on developments in Hungary, she suggests that constitutional scholars must remain attentive to broader political and societal dynamics, including corruption, culture wars and evolving public sentiment. Ultimately, Van der Tol calls for a vision of constitutionalism centred on a shared “common life” capable of accommodating difference without deepening division. The post is the first in a series from scholars shortlisted for this year’s prize.
Access the original blog post, read about the other nominees, and discover more about Dr Van der Tol’s book using the links below.