Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #73095 in Books
• Published on: 1991-07-24
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 397 pages

From Library Journal
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.

Customer Reviews

A very good book on democratic theory
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.

Fine update on themes introduced in Polyarchy
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.

Dahl is great
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.