What the Constitution Means To Me
There are three ways to define a “constitution.” In one context, it may be defined as the manner on which political bodies are placed together. Another definition is an allocation of powers and rights in a written document. Similarly, it is also taken as a referent for disputes. (Peaslee, 1985) In one sense the "constitution" of a political body is simply a way of stating how the body is put together. It is how the body is actually "constituted." In this sense every political body, and accordingly every state, has a constitution. A person or institution within the state who effectively exercises a certain kind of power has such power because of the constitution of that state. If some document states that the power lies elsewhere, then the document is to that extent not the constitution as so defined, since the document does not accurately reflect how the state is actually constituted.
In another commonly used sense, a "constitution" is simply a document that allocates powers and rights in a political body. Thus, there are works that compile constitutions of the world: works that are collections of such documents. (Blaustein and Flanz, 1971) Amendments to a constitution are amendments to the document. A constitution consists of words in articles and amendments. Finally, we can think of a constitution as a kind of fundamental political agreement. The elements of a political society that hold power agree that decisions will be made in a certain way, by certain officials, institutions, or bodies. The terms of the agreement may be written or not. The agreement may be changed by express or implicit agreement. The agreement may be abolished or superseded by express or implicit agreement. Moreover, the agreement may be violated, even repeatedly. But as long as such an agreement serves as a fundamental referent for disputes among the elements that have power in the political society, one can speak of it as a constitution. (Peaselee, 1985)
References:
Blaustein, A. and Flanz, G. (1971.): Constitutions of the Countries of the World, looseleaf, New York.
Peaslee, A. (1985) Constitution of Nations, multivolume, 4th ed. Dordrecht
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