Product Description

A magisterial introduction to the relationship between liberalism and democracy, from its beginnings in classical Greek thought to our own times.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #463109 in Books
• Published on: 2005-10-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 104 pages

Review
Praise for Norberto Bobbio: "Italy's leading legal and political philosopher ... one of the most authoritative figures in his country's politics." -- Guardian

The Guardian
‘Italy’s leading legal and political philosopher... one of the most authoritative figures in his country’s politics.’

About the Author
Norberto Bobbio was one of Italy's foremost thinkers. He taught at a number of universities, including Siena, Padua and Turin; his other works include Left and Right and Democracy and Dictatorship: The Nature and Limits of State Power.

Customer Reviews

Remarkable short book which deserves a very wide readership
I think this is probably one of the very few decent books in the "radical thinkers" series, no only is it readable in a very nice plain prose but it succeeds in communicating very nicely the major developments in liberalism, democracy and socialism from their inceptions to the present day, it does so with some style in a series of short, succinct chapters.

The concepts of and emergence of individual rights, individual freedom and individual proprietorship, then with democratisation the concepts of an emergence of social rights, social freedoms and criticisms of individual proprietorship, central to socialism's emergence, are dealt with.

The final conclusion is that there are two seperate and competiting definitions of liberty, positive and negative, freedom to and freedom from, Bobbio believes that with the retreat to first principles of individual proprietorship and market forces of capitalist/liberal intellectuals like Nozick are returning to an authentic liberalism which of necessity opposes and exists independently and apart from conceptual or practical democracy.

I cant level many criticisms at this book, the writing is superb and the content manages to summarise a lot of political history without polemic or bias, on the other hand if anyone is seeking to examine the concept of negative liberty and its application to a real world of individuals vulnerable to structural unemployment or predatory behaviour, ie were the same negative liberties could be threatened by firms other than government operating within the legal parameters established by government, this is only a start.

Clarity in the analysis of a difficult subject
A complex yet succinct analysis of two philosophies, their interrelationships, their interactions with other perspectives and how they've changed in different circumstances. A work of political philosophy which takes for granted (rather than ignores) the social class aspect of ideology and history. Very interesting, especially the clear linkage between democracy and the maximal state and its corollary the antagonism between liberalism and, for example, universal suffrage.