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8 New J. Eur. Crim. L. 3 (2017)

handle is hein.journals/newjecla8 and id is 1 raw text is: Editorial NJECL Newjournal of European Criminal Law 2017, Vol. 8(l) 3-5 W er frem de Sprachen ©K The Author(s) 2017 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav nicht kennt ... DOl: 10.1 177/2032284417699270 njecl.sagepub.com OSAGE The aphorism, from that universal genius, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, is, in full, 'Werfremde Sprachen nicht kennt, weiss nichts von seiner eigenen'. An English rendering might be 'Those who know no foreign languages, know nothing of their own'. I hold this to be true. It is also true that if one knows no foreign language, then one cannot fully comprehend any foreign culture or thought process and cannot in consequence relate to other linguistic and cultural communities, except through the narrow prism of one's monoculture. If this does not lead to contempt or disdain for others or to fear of things alien, it can result in an attitude of superiority: our language, our culture as a hallmark of personal quality and civilization. The converse is also true that exposure to and knowledge of other languages and cultures leads to better knowledge and understanding of one's own as well as to broadening one's vision and generating respect and sympathy for others. This brings me to an article published by Professor Nicholas Boyle of Cambridge University in the New European of 17 January 2017 under the title 'The problem with the English: England doesn 't want to be just another member of a team'. The reasoning behind the title is that England still (mistakenly) believes in its own exceptionalism. The article thus gives a clear insight into the psychological reasons that unleashed an emotion so strong that the English 'threw reason and practicality to the winds' and voted to exit the European Union (EU). Professor Boyle is an emeritus professor of German at the University of Cambridge and one of the world's preeminent Goethe scholars. From this may stem his incisive grasp of the English psyche and of the previously dormant forces which once released have produced the Brexit stampede, seemingly unstoppable, despite the direct and collateral damage it will cause. He, although English, sees the English as others see them, that is, in a way they cannot see themselves. The Professor's article has led me to the answer which had previously eluded me. The question was this: every member state of the EU has its common law and every member state has to reconcile its sovereignty with EU membership, so why is it that the United Kingdom is so concerned with its sovereignty (in particular with the English doctrine of parliamentary sover- eignty) and feels such a compelling need to protect English common law against encroachment by EU law that it has consistently insisted on exceptional treatment in the form of opt-outs? What is so intrinsically special or superior about English common law? What is so admirable about a con- stitutional doctrine that rather than constraining state power, which all modern constitutions seek to do, actually glorifies the very absence of such constraints? The answer, prompted by my reading of Professor Boyle's paper, is that there is nothing intrinsically better about the English common law or the English constitution, but this truth, although clear to all others, is not seen by the English. They hold the opposite to be true and thus demand exceptional treatment to avoid what they see as detrimental contamination. This has now

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