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Author: Joseph V. Femia
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191521175
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 192
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Book Description
Given the almost universal assumption that democracy is a 'good thing', the goal of mankind, it is easy to forget that 'rule by the people' has been vehemently opposed by some of the most distinguished thinkers in the Western tradition. The author attempts to combat collective amnesia by systematically exploring and evaluating anti-democratic thought since the French Revolution. Using categories first introduced by A. O. Hirschman in The Rhetoric of Reaction, Femia examines the various arguments under the headings of 'perversity', 'futility', and 'jeopardy'. This classification scheme enables him to highlight the fatalism and pessimism of anti-democratic thinkers, their conviction that democratic reform would be either pointless or destructive. Femia shows how they failed to understand the adaptability of democracy, its ability to co-exist with the traditional and elitist values. But, controversially, he also argues that some of their predictions and observations have been confirmed by history.
Author: Joseph V. Femia
Publisher: OUP Oxford
ISBN: 0191521175
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 192
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Book Description
Given the almost universal assumption that democracy is a 'good thing', the goal of mankind, it is easy to forget that 'rule by the people' has been vehemently opposed by some of the most distinguished thinkers in the Western tradition. The author attempts to combat collective amnesia by systematically exploring and evaluating anti-democratic thought since the French Revolution. Using categories first introduced by A. O. Hirschman in The Rhetoric of Reaction, Femia examines the various arguments under the headings of 'perversity', 'futility', and 'jeopardy'. This classification scheme enables him to highlight the fatalism and pessimism of anti-democratic thinkers, their conviction that democratic reform would be either pointless or destructive. Femia shows how they failed to understand the adaptability of democracy, its ability to co-exist with the traditional and elitist values. But, controversially, he also argues that some of their predictions and observations have been confirmed by history.
Author: Dmitry Shlapentokh
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781351292764
Category : HISTORY
Languages : en
Pages : 343
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Book Description
"The political uncertainty following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rejection of the revolutionary model has brought Russian political thought full circle as democratic forces contend with authoritarian nationalism. This volume is essential to understanding the antidemocratic tradition in Russia and the persistent danger of totalitarianism."--Provided by publisher.
Author: Joseph V. Femia
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134443285
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 177
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Book Description
A much needed reappraisal of Vilfredo Pareto's often ignored or misunderstood contribution to the theory and philosophy of politics.
Author: Erich Kofmel
Publisher: Andrews UK Limited
ISBN: 1845408675
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 330
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Book Description
From a historical and cross-cultural perspective it cannot be denied that most democracies failed. Only western democracies for a short while -- from the fall of Soviet communism to the rise of radical Islam -- believed themselves to be invincible. It has therefore become necessary to think about political alternatives once more and to study threats to democracy from within and without as well as common modes of failure of democracy across times and cultures. This book marks the start of a daring new debate and re-introduces anti-democratic thought and practice to the academic discourse and into the syllabus. It wishes to offer a serious discussion of anti-democratic thought, rather than an apology of democracy. 'I am the proponent of a new engagement with anti-democratic thought. This book outlines a positive agenda for the future.' -- Erich Kofmel (Editor). In a comprehensive overview, contributors to this volume discuss theoretical perspectives as well as examples of anti-democratic thought from ancient Greece to modern-day Israel and Bangladesh. A book that grew out of an international workshop on Anti-Democratic Thought organized by the Sussex Centre for the Individual and Society (SCIS) and held at the 2007 annual conference "Workshops in Political Theory" in Manchester, England. 250 pages. PUBLISHER'S ANNOUNCEMENT Imprint Academic and Erich Kofmel I have been coming under pressure for several months on the matter of Imprint Academic’s publication of this book edited by Erich Kofmel. Initially this was from an anonymous group calling themselves “For and On Behalf of the Victims of Erich Kofmel”. They wished me to cancel publication of both Imprint Academic’s Kofmel volumes, on the grounds that money obtained by [alleged] fraud has been used in their development. My response was (a) I do not deal with anonymous bodies; (b) Erich Kofmel has not yet been found guilty of fraud; (c) I have a contractual obligation not just to the editor of these volumes but to his contributors. That remains essentially my position, although the problem of anonymity seems now to have gone. I have no wish for the reputation of Imprint Academic to be damaged by its association with Erich Kofmel, but neither do I intend to put myself in the wrong by breaking a legal publishing agreement on the basis of unproved allegations. I should perhaps add that Imprint Academic’s contract with Erich Kofmel has not to date involved any money changing hands in either direction. Anthony Freeman Managing Editor, Imprint Academic 17th April 2009
Author: Cesare Cuttica
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 900440662X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 317
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Book Description
This volume offers a new and cross-disciplinary approach to the study of democratic ideas and practices in early modern England.
Author: Cesare Cuttica
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0192690930
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 295
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Book Description
Anti-democracy in England 1570-1642 is a detailed study of anti-democratic ideas in early modern England. By examining the rich variety of debates about democracy that took place between 1570 and 1642, it shows the key importance anti-democratic language held in the late Tudor and early Stuart periods. In particular, it argues that anti-democratic critiques were addressed at 'popular government' as a regime that empowered directly and fully the irrational, uneducated, dangerous commonalty; it explains why and how criticism of democracy was articulated in the contexts here under scrutiny; and it demonstrates that the early modern era is far more relevant to the development of democratic concepts and practices than has hitherto been acknowledged. The study of anti-democracy is carried out through a close textual analysis of sources often neglected in the history of political thought and by way of a contextual approach to Elizabethan, Jacobean, and Caroline history. Most importantly, the study re-evaluates the role of religion and cultural factors in the history of democracy and of political ideas more generally. The point of departure is at a time when the establishment and Presbyterians were at loggerheads on pivotal politico-ecclesiastical and theoretical matters; the end coincides with the eruption of the Civil Wars. Cesare Cuttica not only places the unexplored issue of anti-democracy at the centre of historiographical work on early modern England, but also offers a novel analysis of a precious portion of Western political reflection and an ideal platform to discuss the legacy of principles that are still fundamental today.
Author: Richard Bellamy
Publisher: ECPR Press
ISBN: 1907301992
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 340
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Book Description
This book gathers together fifteen classic essays by leading scholar Richard Bellamy, tracing the history of Italian political thought from Beccaria to Bobbio. Written over the past 25 years, they constitute the first account in English of the modern Italian political tradition. The author pays special attention to the different ways Italian theorists have linked politics and ethics, and their various conceptions of the state and of democracy. The resulting variations on Machiavellian themes gave rise to distinctively Italian understandings of Liberalism, Marxism, Fascism and Socialism, which were all associated with a peculiarly realist account of democracy. Among the thinkers discussed are Cesare Beccaria, Antonio Genovesi, Giuseppe Mazzini, Benedetto Croce, Giovanni Gentile, Antonio Gramsci, Vilfredo Pareto, Gaetano Mosca and Norberto Bobbio. ‘In advancing the tantalising claims that the Italians invented modern politics as well as one of the most important political traditions we have for understanding it, this book is sure to entice and provoke. Richard Bellamy shows how the diverse titular thinkers thought through problems of force and consent, morality and utility, mass movements and democracy, the social role of critical intellectuals, and the critical and utopian dimensions of liberalism and socialism. An important book by one of our most sophisticated observers of contemporary politics.’ Walter L Adamson Dobbs Professor of History, Emory University ‘This is a brilliant and much-needed book on the history of political ideas in modern Italy. An excellent text both for students of Italy’s political thought, and for scholars of democratic theory.’ Nadia Urbinati Kyriakos Tsakopoulos Professor of Political Theory and Hellenic Studies, Columbia University ‘Admirably combining conceptual and historical analysis, these essays offer imaginative interpretations of important Italian thinkers, and remind us that Bellamy’s world-class contribution in this field has been inspired by his sustained engagement with the premises and principles of liberalism. While specialists in Italian thought will be grateful to ECPR Press for gathering these essays in a single volume, Bellamy’s clear, elegant arguments will interest all students of political theory.’ Joseph V Femia Emeritus Professor of Political Theory, University of Liverpool
Author: Terence Ball
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521563543
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 772
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Book Description
Table of contents
Author: Norman Abjorensen
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1538120747
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 551
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Book Description
Democracy is easy to talk about but hard to define in other than broad generalizations; its history is a long, complex, and contested subject. What this volume seeks to do is to explore the general evolution of political and social thinking that would eventually coalesce into what we now know as democracy, for all its imperfections and shortcomings. The question of just why some societies evolved into a democratic trajectory and others did not continues to engage the interest of historians, political scientists, sociologists, and anthropologists. Much conjecture surrounds the rise of certain elements we now recognize if not as democratic, then proto-democratic, such as collective decision-making, constraints on the exercise of power and a degree of accountability of the ruler to the ruled. If democracy in the sense of “rule by the people” has two essential qualities – rule by the majority and the equal treatment of free citizens - then its origins, however feeble, are to be found in these early examples of government. Historical Dictionary of Democracy contains a chronology, an introduction, a glossary, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 600 cross-referenced entries. This book is an excellent resource for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about democracy.
Author: Andrew Feenberg
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
ISBN: 0742574431
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 303
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Book Description
Is the Internet the key to a reinvigorated public life? Or will it fragment society by enabling citizens to associate only with like-minded others? Online community has provided social researchers with insights into our evolving social life. As suburbanization and the breakdown of the extended family and neighborhood isolate individuals more and more, the Internet appears as a possible source for reconnection. Are virtual communities 'real' enough to support the kind of personal commitment and growth we associate with community life, or are they fragile and ultimately unsatisfying substitutes for human interaction? Community in the Digital Age features the latest, most challenging work in an important and fast-changing field, providing a forum for some of the leading North American social scientists and philosophers concerned with the social and political implications of this new technology. Their provocative arguments touch on all sides of the debate surrounding the Internet, community, and democracy.
