Democracy and Its Critics

Catalog description

The term "democracy" has become synonymous with legitimate rule. But what kind of democracy is the true fountain of legitimacy? What type of institutions are best fitted for instituting democracy? What are the conditions without which democracy cannot survive? Who is included in the phrase "we, the people"? Are democratic regimes more viable in homogenous or heterogeneous societies? Can democracy be tyrannical? This course investigates historical and contemporary controversies that reflect various challenges to democracy, the forms of actual democratic politics, and the meaning of "democracy" as a concept.