In this book, one of the most prominent political theorists of our era makes a statement about what democracy is and why it is important. Robert Dahl examines the most basic assumptions of democratic theory, tests them against the questions raised by its critics, and recasts the theory of democracy in a new and coherent whole. He concludes by discussing the directions in which democracy must move if advanced democratic states are to exist in the future.
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Dahl defends democracy against various criticisms, including anarchism and its tenet that even democracy is coercive; the normative view that democracy is less desirable than elite rule; and the empirical claim that democracy is impossible due to an inevitable existence of an elite. Dahl argues that a widespread distribution of wealth is necessary for meaningful political democracy, an idea he discussed more fully in A Preface to Economic Democracy ( LJ 9/1/85). He also suggests how political institutions can prevent control by elites by incorporating groups of randomly selected citizens into the system. Dahl is well-known in political science for his major contributions to democratic theory; although this book contains material revised from earlier works, it is a necessary purchase for graduate libraries and recommended for undergraduate and public libraries.
- David Steiniche, Missouri Western State Coll., St. Joseph
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
- David Steiniche, Missouri Western State Coll., St. Joseph
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fine update on themes introduced in Polyarchy,
By A Customer
This review is from: Democracy and Its Critics (Paperback)
This is a highly readable summary of Dahl's earlier work. Non-academics will find his use of dialogue easily accessible. Perhaps it's greatest success is the way that it thoughtfully approaches the basic premises of democracy, foundational principles all too-often glossed over in democratic literature.
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dahl is great,
This review is from: Democracy and Its Critics (Paperback)
Dahl created a bunch of dialogues that clearly illustrate specific problems with anarchism and elitism. Then, he discussed democracy and his hopes for the future. He's a fine writer and thinker who deserves more attention from non-academics.
5 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A very good book on democratic theory,
By Jorge Navarrete (Santiago, Chile) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Democracy and Its Critics (Paperback)
This is an excelent book on political theory and also one of the best defenses of democracy as a political system I have ever read. Specially good it its chapter on "guardinship", contradicting the most common arguments in favor of different "tutors" of the people.
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First Sentence:
From ancient times some people have conceived of a political system in which the members regard one another as political equals, are collectively sovereign, and possess all the capacities, resources, and institutions they need in order to govern themselves. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
primary political rights, quasi guardians, stable polyarchies, stable polyarchy, monistic democracy, minority domination, full polyarchy, stockholder democracy, intrinsic equality, unanimous direct democracy, subcultural pluralism, judicial guardians, nondemocratic process, advanced democratic country, urgent political concerns, modern democratic countries, binding collective decisions, strict majority rule, democratic unit, shadow theory, enlightened sympathy, categorical right, case for guardianship, modern democratic ideas, inclusive suffrage Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, New Zealand, World War, Costa Rica, Latin America, European Community, John Stuart Mill, Republic of Venice, Second Treatise, Soviet Union, Strong Equality, United Kingdom, James Mill, John Rawls, South Korea, Gaetano Mosca, James Madison, Renaissance Italy, Roman Republic, Swiss Confederation, Thirty Tyrants New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
From ancient times some people have conceived of a political system in which the members regard one another as political equals, are collectively sovereign, and possess all the capacities, resources, and institutions they need in order to govern themselves. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
primary political rights, quasi guardians, stable polyarchies, stable polyarchy, monistic democracy, minority domination, full polyarchy, stockholder democracy, intrinsic equality, unanimous direct democracy, subcultural pluralism, judicial guardians, nondemocratic process, advanced democratic country, urgent political concerns, modern democratic countries, binding collective decisions, strict majority rule, democratic unit, shadow theory, enlightened sympathy, categorical right, case for guardianship, modern democratic ideas, inclusive suffrage Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, New Zealand, World War, Costa Rica, Latin America, European Community, John Stuart Mill, Republic of Venice, Second Treatise, Soviet Union, Strong Equality, United Kingdom, James Mill, John Rawls, South Korea, Gaetano Mosca, James Madison, Renaissance Italy, Roman Republic, Swiss Confederation, Thirty Tyrants New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 100
books:
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100
books
cite this book:
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- The Social Contract (Penguin Classics) by Jean-Jacques Rousseau on 19 pages
- Social Contract: Essays by Locke, Hume, and Rousseau by John Locke on 19 pages
- Representative Government by John Stuart Mill on 9 pages
- Considerations on Representative Government (Great Books in Philosophy) by John Stuart Mill on 6 pages
- Considerations on Representative Government by Stuart John Mill on 6 pages
See all 100 books this book cites
- Nietzschean Defense of Democracy: An Experiment in Postmodern Politics by Lawrence J. Hatab on 14 pages
- Talking It Through: Puzzles of American Democracy by Robert W. Bennett on 7 pages
- U.S. Intervention and Regime Change in Nicaragua by Mauricio Solaun on 6 pages
- Information and American Democracy: Technology in the Evolution of Political Power (Communication, Society and Politics) by Bruce Bimber on 6 pages
- Einführung in die politischen Theorien der Gegenwart (German Edition) by Jürgen Hartmann on 5 pages
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