Aspects of 20th-century democracy such as economic justice, human rights, industrial democracy, property, pluralism, and the roots of liberalism are explored in this wide-ranging collection of essays, which expands on the analyses made in two of Macpherson's earlier books, Democratic Theory and The Life and Times of Liberal Democracy. Closely considering the past ups and downs of the concept of economic justice, Macpherson reaches a disturbing conclusion: that the concept is likely to wither away. Macpherson's subject matter ranges from an examination of the extent to which human rights are implemented in different parts of the world, to the probable future of workers' participation in industrial decision-making in both capitalist and socialist countries, to a discussion of the roots of modern liberalism that also reexamines Hobbes, this time as an economist. Taking a sweeping look backwards over the history of theory, this book elicits the role of economic assumptions in political theory and opens new doors to an understanding of state, class, and property.

The Rise and Fall of Economic Justice and Other Essays

Humor & Entertainment

MacPherson, C.B.

Movies

Oxford University Press

democracy became embedded in the shifting ideas of social equality

The life and times of liberal democracy

This wide-ranging collection of essyas explores aspects of 20th-century democracy such as economic justice, human rights, industrial democracy, property, pluralism, and the roots of liberalism, and expands on the analyses made in two of Macpherson's earlier books, Democratic Theory and The Life and Times of Liberal Democracy. Closely considering the past ups and downs of the concept of economic justice, Macpherson surveys subject matter that ranges from an examination of the extent to which human rights are implemented in different parts of the world, to the probable future of workers' participation in industrial decision-making in both capitalist and socialist countries, to a discussion of the roots of modern liberalism that also reexamines Hobbes, this time as an economist. Taking a sweeping look backwards over the history of theory, this book elicits the role of economic assumptions in political theory and opens new doors to an understanding of state, class, and property.

Business & Money

Economics

In this concise yet powerful book, one of the twentieth century's most respected political philosophers presents a controversial reassessment of the political ideas and intellectual legacy of Edmund Burke. A practicing politician and powerful writer, full of ideas, Burke was intent on getting those ideas translated into government policies. But he was too much the impatient practitioner to set out his principles in a single book in the manner of Locke or Hume, leaving both admirers and opponents ample scope to reinterpret his work in different ways. Macpherson, however, finds Burke's views on political economy to be the one consistent factor in his thinking. Today Burke is often viewed as one of modern conservatism's founding lights, and in an era of global capitalism unfettered by national borders, Macpherson's reassessment of Burke's ideas is perhaps more timely than ever.

Burke (Past Masters)

Biographies & Memoirs

The author traces the background of current liberal-democratic theory, explains how the concept of democracy became both embedded in the shifting ideas of social equality and increasingly dependent on the mechanism of capitalism, and points the way to a more participatory democracy.

The Life and Times of Liberal Democracy

Politics & Social Sciences

Politics & Government

This seminal work by political philosopher C.B. Macpherson was first published by the Clarendon Press in 1962, and remains of key importance to the study of liberal-democratic theory half-a-century later. In it, Macpherson argues that the chief difficulty of the notion of individualism that underpins classical liberalism lies in what he calls its "possessive quality"--"its conception of the individual as essentially the proprietor of his own person or capacities, owing nothing to society for them." Under such a conception, the essence of humanity becomes freedom from dependence on the wills of others; society is little more than a system of economic relations; and political society becomes a means of safeguarding private property and the system of economic relations rooted in property. As the New Statesman declared: "It is rare for a book to change the intellectual landscape. It is even more unusual for this to happen when the subject is one that has been thoroughly investigated by generations of historians. . . Until the appearance of Professor Macpherson's book, it seemed unlikely that anything radically new could be said about so well-worn a topic. The unexpected has happened, and the shock waves are still being absorbed." A new introduction by Frank Cunningham puts the work in a twenty-first-century context.

The Political Theory of Possessive Individualism: Hobbes to Locke (Wynford Books)

Philosophy

In this new, affordable edition of a long out-of-print yet foundational work on twentieth-century political philosophy, renowned philosopher C.B. Macpherson further explores the ideas that he advanced in such previous books as The Political Theory of Possessive Individualism. In Democratic Theory: Essays in Retrieval, Macpherson modifies, extends, and clarifies the concepts of a person's power and the "transfer of powers," arguing that a twentieth-century liberal-democratic theory can be based on an adequate concept of human powers and capacities without insuperable difficulties. He argues that the neo-classical liberalisms of Chapman, Rawls, and Berlin fall short of accomplishing this goal largely because, in different ways, they fail to see or understate the transfer of powers. Macpherson suggests that the liberal theory of property should be, and can be, fundamentally revised in order to accommodate new democratic demands. He establishes the need for a theory of democracy that steers clear of the disabling central defect of current liberal-democratic theory, while recovering the humanistic values that liberal democracy has always claimed. The result is one of the seminal works of twentieth-century political philosophy. A new Introduction by Frank Cunningham situates the work in a twenty-first-century context.

Democratic Theory: Essays in Retrieval (Wynford Books)

Cunningham, Frank

In this brief but powerful book, acclaimed political philosopher C.B. Macpherson sets out in bold relief the essence of liberal democracy, both as it is currently conceived and as it might be reimagined. Macpherson argues that from its beginnings liberal democracy has accepted the underpinning principle of capitalist societies, that the "market maketh man." If that remains the central assumption of liberal democracy, Macpherson declares, then as an organizing framework for society, liberal democracy has reached the end of its useful life. But if a broader concept of liberal democracy is accepted-"if [Macpherson writes] liberal democracy is taken to mean a society striving to ensure that all its members are equally free to realize their capabilities"-the great days of liberal democracy may yet lie ahead. The Wynford edition includes a new Introduction by Frank Cunningham of the University of Toronto.

The Life and Times of Liberal Democracy (Wynford Project)

Democratic theory

In this new, affordable edition of a long out-of-print yet foundational work on twentieth-century political philosophy, renowned philosopher C.B. Macpherson further explores the ideas that he advanced in such previous books as The Political Theory of Possessive Individualism.In Democratic Theory: Essays in Retrieval, Macpherson modifies, extends, and clarifies the concepts of a person's power and the "transfer of powers," arguing that a twentieth-century liberal-democratic theory can be based on an adequate concept of human powers and capacities without insuperable difficulties. He argues that the neo-classical liberalisms of Chapman, Rawls, and Berlin fall short of accomplishing this goal largely because, in different ways, they fail to see or understate the transfer of powers.Macpherson suggests that the liberal theory of property should be, and can be, fundamentally revised in order to accommodate new democratic demands. He establishes the need for a theory of democracy that steers clear of the disabling central defect of current liberal-democratic theory, while recovering the humanistic values that liberal democracy has always claimed. The result is one of the seminal works of twentieth-century political philosophy. A new Introduction by Frank Cunningham situates the work in a twenty-first-century context.

Democratic theory: essays in retrieval

Clarendon Press

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Reference

English as a Second Language

Oxford : Clarendon Press, 1975

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Books by MacPherson, C.B.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by MacPherson, C.B.. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Rise and Fall of Economic Justice and Other Essays

The life and times of liberal democracy

The Rise and Fall of Economic Justice and Other Essays

Burke (Past Masters)

The Life and Times of Liberal Democracy

The Political Theory of Possessive Individualism: Hobbes to Locke (Wynford Books)

Democratic Theory: Essays in Retrieval (Wynford Books)

The Life and Times of Liberal Democracy (Wynford Project)

Democratic theory: essays in retrieval

Democratic theory