Democracy – A Life

Democracy is a biography of the concept, going back to 6th century Greece and following it through its various manifestations to a peak in the fourth century and a gradual decline thereafter, also in relation to Rome. It is important to remember that the original Greek democracy was direct, although limited to men as citizens, while the modern meaning entails representation, or what Lord Hailsham used to call elective dictatorship. From late Antiquity until the Renaissance, democracy was eclipsed by other forms of government but eventually re-emerges in the modern form in 17th century England, then 18th-century France and North America, championed by Thomas Paine. Modern forms of democracy can still learn something from ancient practices and I liked the definition from Josiah Ober of democracy as 'collective self-government that is at once stably effective and limited'. Cartledge would like to go further and sees the emergence of tele-democracy by combining new digital and information technology with ancient democratic practice – this may also require an international Bill of Digital Rights. This may represent a clarion call for the West but there are other absolutist forces with completely opposing ideas; and the reality is that we live in a pseudo-democracy underpinned by plutocracy as expressed in funding contributions and honours.