Democracy: Government of the People or Government of the Politicians? (Critical Currents in Latin American Perspective Series)

In this accessible and engaging book, JosZ Nun provides a comprehensive analysis of the theory and practice of democracy from ancient Greece to contemporary Latin America. The author's authoritative historical and comparative discussion of democracy is combined with his own evaluation of the conditions and possibilities for the development of genuinely democratic societies in our time throughout the world. All readers will benefit from Nun's insightful distinction between two visions of democracy-government of the people or government of the politicians-and their profound consequences. One hundred and fifty years ago, Abraham Lincoln stressed the pressing need for a new definition of 'freedom.' Today, with 85 of some 190 countries claiming to be representative democracies, JosZ Nun makes an equally compelling case for 'democracy.' In emerging democracies throughout much of the developing world, the need is especially urgent, as nascent debates about democracy are modified by such descriptions as delegative, transitional, incomplete, low-intensity, relative, uncertain, or even authoritarian. In accessible and engaging style, Nun provides a comprehensive analysis of the theory and practice of democracy from ancient Greece to contemporary Latin America. The author's authoritative historical and comparative discussion of democracy is combined with his own evaluation of the conditions and possibilities for the development of genuinely democratic societies in our time, in Latin America and throughout the world. The author identifies the preconditions of a democratic regime, the links between citizenship construction and social rights, the centrality of work for the promotion of equality and freedom, and the current democratic deficits both in core and peripheral countries. All readers will benefit from Nun's insightful distinction between two visions of democracy--government of the people or government of the politicians--and its profound consequences. One hundred and fifty years ago, Abraham Lincoln stressed the pressing need for a new definition of "freedom". Today, with 85 of some 190 countries claiming to be representative democracies, Jose Nun makes an equally compelling case for "democracy". In emerging democracies throughout much of the developing world, the need is especially urgent, as nascent debates about democracy are modified by such descriptions as delegative, transitional, incomplete, low-intensity, relative, uncertain, or even authoritarian. In accessible style, Nun provides a comprehensive analysis of the theory and practice of democracy from ancient Greece to contemporary Latin America. The author's authoritative historical and comparative discussion of democracy is combined with his own evaluation of the conditions and possibilities for the development of genuinely democratic societies in our time, in Latin America and throughout the world. The author identifies the preconditions of a democratic regime, the links between citizenship construction and social rights, the centrality of work for the promotion of equality and freedom, and the current democratic deficits both in core and peripheral countries Introduction -- Family Resemblances -- Athens And Sparta -- Schumpeter And The Politicians -- The Pluralist Theories -- The Declaration Of 1948 -- Capitalism And Democracy: A First Approach -- The Keynesian Alchemy -- Marshall And The Citizens -- From Schumpeter To Marshall -- The Experience In The Developed Capitalist Countries -- European Transitions To Democracy -- West Capitalism And Democracy: A Second Approach -- Legitimacy, Moral Autonomy, And Preferences -- From The Thirty Glorious Years To The Great Recession -- Welfare States In Transition -- The Problematic Of Social Exclusion -- The Latin American Case --an Unhappy Balance -- An Idea And Its Concrete Manifestations -- Conditional Democracy -- Deceiving Resemblances. José Nun ; Translated By David Haskel And Guillermo Haskel. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 137-140) And Index. Nascent debates about democracy in the contemporary developing world are modified by such descriptions as delegative, incomplete or even authoritarian. Nun provides a comprehensive analysis of the theory and practice of democracy from ancient Greece to contemporary Latin America.