The Eyes of the People

Democracy in an Age of Spectatorship

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Government, Democracy, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Political, Politics, History & Theory
Cover of the book The Eyes of the People by Jeffrey Edward Green, Oxford University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Jeffrey Edward Green ISBN: 9780199888221
Publisher: Oxford University Press Publication: December 31, 2009
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Jeffrey Edward Green
ISBN: 9780199888221
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication: December 31, 2009
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

For centuries it has been assumed that democracy must refer to the empowerment of the People's voice. In this pioneering book, Jeffrey Edward Green makes the case for considering the People as an ocular entity rather than a vocal one. Green argues that it is both possible and desirable to understand democracy in terms of what the People gets to see instead of the traditional focus on what it gets to say. The Eyes of the People examines democracy from the perspective of everyday citizens in their everyday lives. While it is customary to understand the citizen as a decision-maker, in fact most citizens rarely engage in decision-making and do not even have clear views on most political issues. The ordinary citizen is not a decision-maker but a spectator who watches and listens to the select few empowered to decide. Grounded on this everyday phenomenon of spectatorship, The Eyes of the People constructs a democratic theory applicable to the way democracy is actually experienced by most people most of the time. In approaching democracy from the perspective of the People's eyes, Green rediscovers and rehabilitates a forgotten "plebiscitarian" alternative within the history of democratic thought. Building off the contributions of a wide range of thinkers-including Aristotle, Shakespeare, Benjamin Constant, Max Weber, Joseph Schumpeter, and many others-Green outlines a novel democratic paradigm centered on empowering the People's gaze through forcing politicians to appear in public under conditions they do not fully control. The Eyes of the People is at once a sweeping overview of the state of democratic theory and a call to rethink the meaning of democracy within the sociological and technological conditions of the twenty-first century.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

For centuries it has been assumed that democracy must refer to the empowerment of the People's voice. In this pioneering book, Jeffrey Edward Green makes the case for considering the People as an ocular entity rather than a vocal one. Green argues that it is both possible and desirable to understand democracy in terms of what the People gets to see instead of the traditional focus on what it gets to say. The Eyes of the People examines democracy from the perspective of everyday citizens in their everyday lives. While it is customary to understand the citizen as a decision-maker, in fact most citizens rarely engage in decision-making and do not even have clear views on most political issues. The ordinary citizen is not a decision-maker but a spectator who watches and listens to the select few empowered to decide. Grounded on this everyday phenomenon of spectatorship, The Eyes of the People constructs a democratic theory applicable to the way democracy is actually experienced by most people most of the time. In approaching democracy from the perspective of the People's eyes, Green rediscovers and rehabilitates a forgotten "plebiscitarian" alternative within the history of democratic thought. Building off the contributions of a wide range of thinkers-including Aristotle, Shakespeare, Benjamin Constant, Max Weber, Joseph Schumpeter, and many others-Green outlines a novel democratic paradigm centered on empowering the People's gaze through forcing politicians to appear in public under conditions they do not fully control. The Eyes of the People is at once a sweeping overview of the state of democratic theory and a call to rethink the meaning of democracy within the sociological and technological conditions of the twenty-first century.

More books from Oxford University Press

Cover of the book The Moral Dimensions of Human Rights by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Five Short Plays - With Audio Level 1 Oxford Bookworms Library by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Property Crime: Oxford Bibliographies Online Research Guide by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Myths Legends and Folktales of America : An Anthology by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book At the Temple Gates by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Bulk Collection by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Voice of the Buddha by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Overfishing by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Saussure's Philosophy of Language as Phenomenology by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Soul Mates by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book On the Wing by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book The Psychology of Music: A Very Short Introduction by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Neurobiology of Disease by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Henry VIII and his Six Wives Level 2 Oxford Bookworms Library by Jeffrey Edward Green
Cover of the book Patterns of Sin in the Hebrew Bible by Jeffrey Edward Green
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy