Customer Reviews

Counterpoints: Selected Essays on Authoritarianism and Democratization (Helen Kellogg Institute for International Studies)

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Guillermo O'Donnell has since the early 1970s devoted his academic quest to analyze and understand Authoritarianism and Democratization.

Firmly grounded in the history of his native Argentina and neighboring Latin American countries, he has over the years added to our understanding of the more suppressive forms of political regimes and their move towards democracy.

Counterpoint gives an excellent overview of Guillermo O'Donnell's research and include more personal reflections on political violence and poverty in Argentina.

His approach is that of a political scientist with a strong bend towards political economy. Democratization is what he thinks is right and the topic is analyzed using various approached ranging from the stringent political science article to the less structured essay.

For a student of democratization processes, the book contains key articles and essays launching the new concept of "delegative" democracy to describe emerging democracies in Latin America, Asia and post communist countries.

Reading Counterpoint leaves one with a renewed hope for democratization. However, O'Donnell's sobering analysis makes it clear that political development processes take time. Furthermore, his analysis underscores the fact that there is no autopilot in the history of countries that will bring their political system safe into the harbour of human dignity.