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Innovative essays that survey democracy through the history of political thought.
In recent years, democratic theorists have argued that democracy and democratic institutions are receding in many parts of the world, including in the United States. Unfortunately, much of the recent discussion has abstracted from the long history of political theory about democracy. Democracy and Its Pathologies features original essays from top scholars who survey the history of democratic thought, from Herodotus and Plato through Tocqueville and Nietzsche. These essays complicate our understanding of how the past viewed democracy, challenging the standard view that before the nineteenth century, theorists were entirely critical of democracy as "mob rule." In addition, the essays provide valuable resources for thinking through our current democratic malaises.
"Democracy and Its Pathologies showcases a productive collaboration between 'Straussian' and 'Cambridge School' scholars. Political theorists of all stripes will discover fresh insights across this collection." — Danielle Charette James, UNC Chapel Hill
"What Church and Duff have put together here is a model for edited collections. All of the contributors are outstanding scholars showcasing their best work. The fate of democracy is probably the most pressing issue confronted today by citizens, policymakers, and academics alike. This volume is thoughtfully composed and covers everything one would expect—plus some surprises—in a book on this subject." — Richard Boyd, Georgetown University
Jeffrey Church is Professor of Political Science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is the author of Kant, Liberalism, and the Meaning of Life. Alexander S. Duff is Associate Professor in the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of Heidegger's Revolutionary Politics: Russia, Iran, and the Anti-Western Imagination.