The emphasis on the role played by European integration as a driver for economic growth, social advance and the political stability of its member states has become a conventional wisdom and informs most analyses of the entire process. Yet little effort has been made to examine the nature of this linkage. To do that, it is imperative to assess how the prospect of an integrated Europe was perceived by governing elites and political forces more generally, and just how it fitted into national debates about what we now define as modernization. In particular, we need to think about the theories, ideologies and historical perspectives that were invoked to evaluate the challenges posed by the prospect of integration and the opportunities it offered. And also the interplay between integration and national modernization. This article tries to offer an overview of these questions, using Italy as a test case. Given the complexity of the issues involved, it is more a tentative agenda for future analysis than a definite account.
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