Reviews
"Among other things, Dallmayr's book seeks to reestablish the central importance of equality in democratic thought, offering a critique of liberalism linked to much democratic theory... His understanding that democracy is a process rather than a goal to be achieved is surely correct; and his use of this as a lens to understand cross-cultural democratic theory is a significant, very-much-needed, optimistic point of view." -- P. R. Babbitt (Southern Arkansas University), Choice Reviews Vol 55."For Fred Dallmayr, democracy is more than counting votes on election day; it is an ethical project with much to learn from non-Western cultures and traditions. At a time when democracy needs all the help it can get, this splendid volume engages with thinkers from around the world to broaden our vision of what democracy can be." --Michael Sandel, author of What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets "This book brilliantly culminates twenty years of Dallmayr's extended effort to bring Western political theory into dialogue with world religion and philosophy. Dallmayr's genial manner of inviting the reader to join him on an ecumenical journey illuminated by signs of capacious erudition is imperative reading for anyone seeking the broadest possible understanding of democracy as a just way of life for our global age." --David Ingram, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola University of Chicago, and author of Rights, Democracy, and Fulfillment in the Era of Identity Politics: Principled Compromises in a Compromised World "Democracy to Come offers a rich exploration of the various traditions that have come to shape the current discourse on what its author labels 'the major catchword of our time'. This book taps not only the western sources like Montesquieu, Tocqueville and others but also the traditions of India and China, Ghandi and Confucius, as well as religious discourses from both Islam and political theology. This book makes a major contribution to what is becoming a truly global discussion of democracy." --David M. Rasmussen, Boston College, and Editor-In-Chief of Philosophy and Social Criticism, "Among other things, Dallmayr's book seeks to reestablish the central importance of equality in democratic thought, offering a critique of liberalism linked to much democratic theory... His understanding that democracy is a process rather than a goal to be achieved is surely correct; and his use of this as a lens to understand cross-cultural democratic theory is a significant, very-much-needed, optimistic point of view." -- P. R. Babbitt (SouthernArkansas University), Choice Reviews Vol 55."For Fred Dallmayr, democracy is more than counting votes on election day; it is an ethical project with much to learn from non-Western cultures and traditions. At a time when democracy needs all the help it can get, this splendid volume engages with thinkers from around the world to broaden our vision of what democracy can be." --Michael Sandel, author of What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets"This book brilliantly culminates twenty years of Dallmayr's extended effort to bring Western political theory into dialogue with world religion and philosophy. Dallmayr's genial manner of inviting the reader to join him on an ecumenical journey illuminated by signs of capacious erudition is imperative reading for anyone seeking the broadest possible understanding of democracy as a just way of life for our global age." --David Ingram, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola University of Chicago, and author of Rights, Democracy, and Fulfillment in the Era of Identity Politics: Principled Compromises in a Compromised World"Democracy to Come offers a rich exploration of the various traditions that have come to shape the current discourse on what its author labels 'the major catchword of our time'. This book taps not only the western sources like Montesquieu, Tocqueville and others but also the traditions of India and China, Ghandi and Confucius, as well as religious discourses from both Islam and political theology. This book makes a major contribution to what isbecoming a truly global discussion of democracy." --David M. Rasmussen, Boston College, and Editor-In-Chief of Philosophy and Social Criticism, "For Fred Dallmayr, democracy is more than counting votes on election day; it is an ethical project with much to learn from non-Western cultures and traditions. At a time when democracy needs all the help it can get, this splendid volume engages with thinkers from around the world to broaden our vision of what democracy can be." --Michael Sandel, author of What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets "This book brilliantly culminates twenty years of Dallmayr's extended effort to bring Western political theory into dialogue with world religion and philosophy. Dallmayr's genial manner of inviting the reader to join him on an ecumenical journey illuminated by signs of capacious erudition is imperative reading for anyone seeking the broadest possible understanding of democracy as a just way of life for our global age." --David Ingram, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola University of Chicago, and author of Rights, Democracy, and Fulfillment in the Era of Identity Politics: Principled Compromises in a Compromised World "Democracy to Come offers a rich exploration of the various traditions that have come to shape the current discourse on what its author labels 'the major catchword of our time'. This book taps not only the western sources like Montesquieu, Tocqueville and others but also the traditions of India and China, Ghandi and Confucius, as well as religious discourses from both Islam and political theology. This book makes a major contribution to what is becoming a truly global discussion of democracy." --David M. Rasmussen, Boston College, and Editor-In-Chief of Philosophy and Social Criticism, "Among other things, Dallmayr's book seeks to reestablish the central importance of equality in democratic thought, offering a critique of liberalism linked to much democratic theory... His understanding that democracy is a process rather than a goal to be achieved is surely correct; and his use of this as a lens to understand cross-cultural democratic theory is a significant, very-much-needed, optimistic point of view." -- P. R. Babbitt (Southern Arkansas University), Choice Reviews Vol 55. "For Fred Dallmayr, democracy is more than counting votes on election day; it is an ethical project with much to learn from non-Western cultures and traditions. At a time when democracy needs all the help it can get, this splendid volume engages with thinkers from around the world to broaden our vision of what democracy can be." --Michael Sandel, author of What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets "This book brilliantly culminates twenty years of Dallmayr's extended effort to bring Western political theory into dialogue with world religion and philosophy. Dallmayr's genial manner of inviting the reader to join him on an ecumenical journey illuminated by signs of capacious erudition is imperative reading for anyone seeking the broadest possible understanding of democracy as a just way of life for our global age." --David Ingram, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola University of Chicago, and author of Rights, Democracy, and Fulfillment in the Era of Identity Politics: Principled Compromises in a Compromised World "Democracy to Come offers a rich exploration of the various traditions that have come to shape the current discourse on what its author labels 'the major catchword of our time'. This book taps not only the western sources like Montesquieu, Tocqueville and others but also the traditions of India and China, Ghandi and Confucius, as well as religious discourses from both Islam and political theology. This book makes a major contribution to what is becoming a truly global discussion of democracy." --David M. Rasmussen, Boston College, and Editor-In-Chief of Philosophy and Social Criticism, "Among other things, Dallmayrs book seeks to reestablish the central importance of equality in democratic thought, offering a critique of liberalism linked to much democratic theory... His understanding that democracy is a process rather than a goal to be achieved is surely correct; and his use of this as a lens to understand cross-cultural democratic theory is a significant, very-much-needed, optimistic point of view." -- P. R. Babbitt (Southern Arkansas University), Choice Reviews Vol 55. "For Fred Dallmayr, democracy is more than counting votes on election day; it is an ethical project with much to learn from non-Western cultures and traditions. At a time when democracy needs all the help it can get, this splendid volume engages with thinkers from around the world to broaden our vision of what democracy can be." --Michael Sandel, author of What Money Can't Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets "This book brilliantly culminates twenty years of Dallmayr's extended effort to bring Western political theory into dialogue with world religion and philosophy. Dallmayr's genial manner of inviting the reader to join him on an ecumenical journey illuminated by signs of capacious erudition is imperative reading for anyone seeking the broadest possible understanding of democracy as a just way of life for our global age." --David Ingram, Professor of Philosophy, Loyola University of Chicago, and author of Rights, Democracy, and Fulfillment in the Era of Identity Politics: Principled Compromises in a Compromised World "Democracy to Come offers a rich exploration of the various traditions that have come to shape the current discourse on what its author labels 'the major catchword of our time'. This book taps not only the western sources like Montesquieu, Tocqueville and others but also the traditions of India and China, Ghandi and Confucius, as well as religious discourses from both Islam and political theology. This book makes a major contribution to what is becoming a truly global discussion of democracy." --David M. Rasmussen, Boston College, and Editor-In-Chief of Philosophy and Social Criticism
Synopsis
In this book Fred Dallmayr lays the groundwork for a new understanding of democracy. He argues that democracy is not a stable system anchored in a manifest authority (like monarchy), but is sustained by the recessed and purely potential rule of the "people". Hence, democracy has to constantly reinvent itself, resembling theologically a creatio continua. Like one of Calder's mobiles, democracy for him involves three basic elements that must be balanced constantly: the people, political leaders, and policy goals. Where this balance is disrupted, democracy derails into populism, Bonapartism, or messianism. Given this need for balance, democratic politics is basically a "relational praxis." In our globalizing age, democracy cannot be confined domestically. Dallmayr rejects the idea that it can be autocratically imposed abroad through forced regime change, or that the dominant Western model can simply be transferred elsewhere. In this respect, he challenges the equation of democracy with the pursuit of individual or collective self-interest, insisting that other, more ethical conceptions are possible and that different societies should nurture democracy with their own cultural resources. Providing examples, he discusses efforts to build democracy in the Middle East, China, and India (respectively with Islamic, Confucian and Hindu resources). In the end, Dallmayr's hope is for a "democracy to come", that is, a cosmopolitan community governed not by hegemonic force but by the spirit of equality and mutual respect., In this book Fred Dallmayr lays the groundwork for a new understanding of democracy. He argues that democracy is not a stable system anchored in a manifest authority (like monarchy), but is sustained by the recessed and purely potential rule of the "people". Hence, democracy has to constantly reinvent itself, resembling theologically a creatio continua. Like one of Calder's mobiles, democracy for him involves three basic elements that must be balanced constantly: the people, political leaders, and policy goals. Where this balance is disrupted, democracy derails into populism, Bonapartism, or messianism. Given this need for balance, democratic politics is basically a "relational praxis."In our globalizing age, democracy cannot be confined domestically. Dallmayr rejects the idea that it can be autocratically imposed abroad through forced regime change, or that the dominant Western model can simply be transferred elsewhere. In this respect, he challenges the equation of democracy with the pursuit of individual or collective self-interest, insisting that other, more ethical conceptions are possible and that different societies should nurture democracy with their own cultural resources. Providing examples, he discusses efforts to build democracy in the Middle East, China, and India (respectively with Islamic, Confucian and Hindu resources). In the end, Dallmayr's hope is for a "democracy to come", that is, a cosmopolitan community governed not by hegemonic force but by the spirit of equality and mutual respect., In this book Fred Dallmayr, one of the progenitors of comparative political theory, lays the groundwork for a new understanding of modern democracy. Dallmayr rejects the idea that democracy is a stable system that develops primarily through its horizontal spread; most expressly, he rejects the idea that democracy can be fostered through regime change and the unidirectional transfer of concepts of popular sovereignty and the public good from the West to autocracies. In fact, he argues that a major danger in modern history has been the tendency of Western leaders to appeal to the "will of the people". The "people" are not a fixed entity, and by invoking it, for example via militant populist movements, we go down the road to totalitarianism, messianism, or millenarianism. Rather than traveling horizontally from one society to others, democracy must be relational. Democracy to Come argues that democracy has to be nurtured by different societies and cultures from within, with their own resources. In order to provide a model of his vision of democracy, Dallmayr challenges the dominant liberal conception anchored in egocentrism, voluntarism, and individual or collective self-interest, and draws from ideas of modern democracy in Latin American / Christian, Middle Eastern / Muslim, Chinese / Confucianist, and Indian / Hindu societies. In turn, the book asserts that democracy can never be a finished project, but will always be about its potential, a democracy to come. It is only in this manner that a general global "ecumene" can come into being. This will be a cosmopolitan community governed not by one force, psychology, theology or society, but by the spirit of equality., Democracy to Come lays the groundwork of a new understanding of modern democracy. Rejecting the idea that democracy is a stable system fostered through regime change and the unidirectional transfer of concepts from the West to autocracies, Fred Dallmayr argues democracy must be relational - nurtured by different societies and cultures from within. In turn, democracy can never be a finished project, but will always be about its potential.
