Beschreibung:
In an era disgusted with politicians and the various instruments of "direct democracy," Walter Lippmann's The Phantom Public remains as relevant as ever. It reveals Lippmann at a time when he was most critical of the ills of American democracy. Antipopulist in sentiment, this volume defends elitism as a serious and distinctive intellectual option, one with considerable precursors in the American past. Lippmann's demythologized view of the American system of government resonates today.
PART I. THE DISENCHANTED MAN II. THE UNATTAINABLE IDEAL III. AGENTS AND BYSTANDERS. IV . WHAT THE PUBLIC DOES V . THE NEUTRALIZATION OF ARBITRARY FORCE PART II VI. THE QUESTION ARISTOTLE ASKED VII . THE NATURE OF A PROBLEM VIII . SOCIAL CONTRACTS IX . THE TWO QUESTIONS BEFORE THE PUBLIC X . THE MAIN VALUE OF PUBLIC DEBATE XI . THE DEFECTIVE RULE XII. THE CRITERIA OF REFORM XIII. THE PRINCIPLES OF PUBLIC OPINION PART III XIV . SOCIETY IN ITS PLACE XV . ABSENTEE RULERS XVI THE REALMS OF DISORDER