All the classical thinkers, ancient and modern, are represented, sometimes in more than one section, as well as a fair smattering of contemporary contributors to the current debate. The collection will provide an effective and relatively painless introduction to students commencing in this area. A handy preliminary sweep through the most salient areas and arguments, and will undoubtedly prove useful to new students of democratic theory. This massive new reader on democracy should be part of any university library and, given the decent price of the paperback, also provides a valuable and affordable addition to the private libraries of political scientists!Undoubtedly, the editors have accomplished their main stated objective, i.e. "to bring together as wide a range of material on democracy as can be assembled in one volume" (p.xi). This is arguably the most comprehensive reader on the subject available in English!The book presents an overview, which will be indispensable for the students!this book deserves to be widely used for many years to come. Students found this to be very useful and liked the book a great deal." -- Karen M Ford, University of Manchester All the classical thinkers, ancient and modern, are represented, sometimes in more than one section, as well as a fair smattering of contemporary contributors to the current debate. The collection will provide an effective and relatively painless introduction to students commencing in this area. A handy preliminary sweep through the most salient areas and arguments, and will undoubtedly prove useful to new students of democratic theory. This massive new reader on democracy should be part of any university library and, given the decent price of the paperback, also provides a valuable and affordable addition to the private libraries of political scientists!Undoubtedly, the editors have accomplished their main stated objective, i.e. "to bring together as wide a range of material on democracy as can be assembled in one volume" (p.xi). This is arguably the most comprehensive reader on the subject available in English!The book presents an overview, which will be indispensable for the students!this book deserves to be widely used for many years to come. Students found this to be very useful and liked the book a great deal."
What is democracy? How can it be defended and justified? How do we understand the complexities of democracy in a world of rapid change? At a time when democracy appears to be universally acclaimed as the only acceptable form of government, it is all the more necessary to be clear about what democracy means. "Democracy: A Reader" provides a range of pivotal statements on this important topic from supporters and defenders as well as critics and skeptics, including Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, Hobbes, Rousseau, de Tocqueville, Kant, Wollstonecraft, Schumpeter, Berlin, Marx, Lenin, Phillips, Young, Dahl, Kymlicka, Parekh, Walzer, Hayek, Habermas, Scruton, Barry, and Mouffe.Key topics include: freedom and autonomy; equality representation; majority rule; citizenship; marxist and socialist critiques; conservative, elitist, and authoritarian critiques; feminist critiques; civil society; the market nationalism; multiculturalism; non-western perspectives; and, the future of democracy.
Within the space of one volume, this comprehensive coverage provides a genuine "handbook" to help citizens of democratic societies understand the ideals underpinning their societies, the ways their societies can live up to the democratic ideals they proclaim, and the obstacles that lie in the path of democracy today.