Research Catalog

Beasts and gods : how democracy changed its meaning and lost its purpose

Title
Beasts and gods : how democracy changed its meaning and lost its purpose / Roslyn Fuller.
Author
Fuller, Roslyn
Publication
London : Zed Books, 2015.

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TextUse in library JFD 16-2730Schwarzman Building - Main Reading Room 315

Details

Description
ix, 414 pages : illustrations, maps; 23 cm
Summary
Democracy has failed to deliver. Equal opportunity and the individual's ability to influence decision-making are a mirage, while both new and established democracies suffer a growing sense of malaise. Analysing a variety of voting methods across twenty countries, Roslyn Fuller shows that modern democracies are not really democracies at all. The side with better funding invariably wins elections and referenda, and the party that forms the government rarely receives the majority of the popular vote. This lack of representation then compounds at the international level, as delegated power is delegated yet again. Arguing for a return to the ancient Athenian idea of democracy based on citizen participation, Beasts and Gods is an extraordinary work, set to reconfigure the foundations of modern society-- Book jacket.
Subjects
Genre/Form
History.
Bibliography (note)
  • Includes bibliographical references (pages 373-402) and index.
Contents
Introduction: What is democracy? -- Part I: Democracy in Athens : people power is born -- The myth of representation -- Buying and selling elections -- Participation : bought in or locked out? -- Modern democracy and the international system : a perfect storm -- Non-governmental organizations and the civil society chimera -- How did things get to be this way? The Roman Republican system and the Founding Fathers of America -- Part II: The way forward : digital democracy -- Disinformed is disenfranchised : why taming mass media is a necessary step towards democracy -- Democracy and dissent : the balance between individual and community -- Direct democracy today : cutting the Gordian knot.
Call Number
JFD 16-2730
ISBN
  • 9781783605439
  • 178360543X
  • 9781783605422
  • 1783605421
OCLC
905524515
Author
Fuller, Roslyn, author.
Title
Beasts and gods : how democracy changed its meaning and lost its purpose / Roslyn Fuller.
Publisher
London : Zed Books, 2015.
Type of Content
text
Type of Medium
unmediated
Type of Carrier
volume
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 373-402) and index.
Research Call Number
JFD 16-2730
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