DUNN:DEMOCRACY PAPER: The Unfinished Journey, 508 BC to AD 1993

by John Dunn

The form of democracy first introduced 2,500 years ago by Kleisthenes--introduced, some scholars say, for his own personal gain--is quite different from what we call democracy today. And yet what was essentially a casual, practical solution to local Greek political difficulties has come to stand virtually unchallenged as the ground for modern political authority, and the questions which the Greeks first raised about the meaning of democratic rule still loom over our political and economic life. In Democracy , noted author John Dunn and twelve expert contributors trace the extraordinary political career of democracy from its appearance in ancient Greece to its recent resurrection in Eastern Europe. As the recent collapse of socialism demonstrates, the idea of democracy still holds a powerful attraction for us. By viewing its astonishing history across this great arc of time, the book shows why democracy today has both the power and the vulnerability which make it the key to
understanding politics, and explains why it has triumphed so decisively in the modern world.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction, Philosophy

303 pages, Paperback

First published September 17, 1992

About the author

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Reviews

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Democracy has some interesting ideas and insights and, to its credit, makes some accurate predictions about the future. On the other hand, all(?) the essayists staunchly endorse classical liberalism and capitalism. So, you know...

[Roger Lohmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read for those who wish to dig a little deeper into their own understandings of the history and contemporary significance of democracy. I found the chapters on the (non-democratic) Italian City States by Quentin Skinner, the Levelers by David Wootton, Gordon Wood's chapter on the American Revolution, and the long chapter on the Marxist-Leninist Detour by Neil Harding to be especially interesting, but others will find the chapters on the Athenian Greeks, the French Revolution, Indian democracy, Feminism and democracy and 1989 in Eastern Europe equally of interest. This book may be particularly of interest to those who think that democracy has always been viewed in the positive terms of today.