Democracy by Arblaster

Democracy by Arblaster

Anthony Arblaster examines the history of both the theory and practice of democracy and the fierce opposition it so often provoked. He finds that through most of history democracy meant what we now call "direct" democracy - the people governing themselves directly through participation in the processes of decision-taking and policy-making. The representative type of democracy we are now familiar with was a relatively late arrival on the scene. Arblaster finds the core of the idea of democracy in the notion of popular power and, in the second part of the book, he explores the meaning of this and the problem it involves. Drawing on the classical writings of Rousseau, Paine and John Stuart Mill, he shows how wide the gap is between their idea of a fully democratic society and the limited realities of the Western democracies of today. Democracy, he argues, remains a relevant ideal and a challenge to conventional political thinking. This edition has been updated to take particular account of the collapse of European communism.

"This concise text (one of its many virtues) is an excellent introduction to the subject for students of politics, particularly those studying on the first year of a degree and the more able A LevelstudentThe introductory chapter might be made compulsory reading for all students of politics." - Talking Politics "...brilliant introduction." - New Statesman and Society

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780335192991
ISBN 10	0335192998
Title	Democracy
Author	Arblaster
Series	Concepts In Social Sciences Ser
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Open University Press
Year published	1994-09-16
Number of pages	144
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.