Democracy and its Crisis

Author(s): A C Grayling

Contemporary Thought

Prompted by the EU referendum in the UK and the presidential election in the USA, A. C. Grayling investigates why the institutions of representative democracy seem unable to hold up against forces they were designed to manage, and why, crucially, it matters. First he considers moments in history - Periclean Athens, the English Civil War, the American and French Revolutions, among them - in which the challenges we face today were first encountered and what solutions, however imperfect, were found. Then he lays bare the specific problems of democracy in the twenty-first century and maps out a set of urgently needed reforms. With the advent of authoritarian leaders and the simultaneous rise of populism, representative democracy appears to be caught between a rock and a hard place, yet it is this space that it must occupy, says Grayling, if a civilized society, that looks after all its people, is to flourish.


Product Information

'An enthusiastic thinker who embraces humour, common sense and lucidity.' Independent 'Grayling is a natural educator.' Ruth Scurr, Spectator

A. C. Grayling is Professor of Philosophy and Master of the New College of the Humanities, London. Among his many books are The God Argument and The Age of Genius. He has contributed regularly to The Times, the Independent, Prospect and the New European, and appears frequently on radio and TV, including Newsnight and CNN News.

General Fields

  • : 9781786072894
  • : Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
  • : Oneworld Publications
  • : 0.37
  • : June 2017
  • : 216mm X 135mm
  • : United Kingdom
  • : April 2017
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : A C Grayling
  • : hardback with dustjacket
  • : English
  • : 321.8
  • : 192