State versus society in Egypt: Consolidating democracy or upgrading autocracy

Abstract

It is to be noted that the ideological and theoretical debate concerning issues of social evolution and
development in Egypt was generally state centered, and relied heavily on theoretical concepts such as
bureaucratic authoritarianism, Oriental despotism and the Asiatic mode of production. For some
considerable time the state seemed formidable enough to have subdued society through its
authoritarian mechanisms such as the military, the security institution and the centralized economy.
This study seeks to achieve two main objectives: First, to discuss and explain the dynamics of Egyptian
mode of authoritarianism during the presidencies of Gamal Abdul Nasser (1952-1970), Anwar Sadat
(1970-1981) and Hosni Mubarak (1981-present) . Secondly, to look at the future prospects for
establishing a democratic state in Egypt based on constitution and constitutionalism.