Uncertainties of a Democratic Age

TL;DRAbstract

Uncertainties of a Democratic Age Leszek Kolakowski (bio) Leaving aside the historical vicissitudes of the word democracy and all kinds of spurious and fraudulent usages of it ("socialist democracy," "people's democracy," "Islamic democracy"), we may say that this concept, as usually understood, includes three components. First, we think of a set of institutions aimed at assuring that the power and influence of political elites correspond to the amount of popular support they enjoy. Second, we have in mind the independence of the legal system from the executive power; the law acts as an autonomous mediating device between individual or corporate interests and the state, and is not an instrument of ruling elites. Third, we think of enforceable barriers built into the legal system that guarantee both the equality of all citizens before the law and basic personal rights, which (though the list is notoriously contestable) include freedom of movement, freedom of speech, freedom of associati

Chat with Paper

AI Agents for this Paper