Reading as Democracy in Crisis: Interpretation, Theory, History explores the dialectic between historical conditions and the reading strategies that arise from them. Chapters covering Plato and Derrida; G.W.F. Hegel; Karl Marx; Ludwig Wittgenstein; Robert Penn Warren; Louise Rosenblatt; Theodor Adorno, Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida; Judith Butler; and Object Oriented Ontology and Digital Humanities provide overviews of and arguments about each subject’s thought in its historical contexts, suggesting how the reading strategies adopted in each case were in part motivated by specific historical circumstances. As the introduction explains, these circumstances often involved forms of democracy in crisis, so that the collection as a whole is an engagement with the dialectic between democracies that are perpetually in crisis and the seemingly unlimited freedom of our reading practices.

Is the world facing a serious threat to the protection of constitutional democracy? There is a genuine debate about the meaning of the various political events that have, for many scholars and observers, generated a feeling of deep foreboding about our collective futures all over the world. Do these events represent simply the normal ebb and flow of political possibilities, or do they instead portend a more permanent move away from constitutional democracy that had been thought triumphant after the demise of the Soviet Union in 1989? Constitutional Democracy in Crisis? addresses these questions head-on: Are the forces weakening constitutional democracy around the world general or nation-specific? Why have some major democracies seemingly not experienced these problems? How can we as scholars and citizens think clearly about the ideas of "constitutional crisis" or "constitutional degeneration"? What are the impacts of forces such as globalization, immigration, income inequality, populism, nationalism, religious sectarianism? Bringing together leading scholars to engage critically with the crises facing constitutional democracies in the 21st century, these essays diagnose the causes of the present afflictions in regimes, regions, and across the globe, believing at this stage that diagnosis is of central importance - as Abraham Lincoln said in his "House Divided" speech, "If we could first know where we are, and whither we are tending, we could then better judge what to do, and how to do it."

In the twenty-first century, democracies across the globe are in crisis. The strength of basic democratic institutions and core enduring political principles and values are eroding in key regions and countries. Authoritarian regimes are rising and populist leaders are emerging. Democracy in Crisis across the World weaves threads of history and politics in two parts to analyze how long this trend may last and what the future may bring. By first examining the state of democracy in Sub-Saharan Africa, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East and North Africa, the second part of the collection highlights to democratic trajectory of India, China, Russia, and the United States. Ending with a look at how the world’s governments have responded to the coronavirus pandemic, contributors argue that unless democracy is defended with resolution and nurtured with resilience, it will fall.

In November 2008, as the economic decline was being fully realized, Canada's newly elected minority government, led by Conservative Stephen Harper, presented a highly divisive fiscal update in advance of a proposed budget. Unable to support the motion, the Liberal and New Democratic Parties, with the backing of the Bloc Québécois, formed a coalition in order to seek a no-confidence vote and to form a new government. In response, Conservative cabinet ministers launched a media blitz, informing Canadians that the opposition was mounting a 'coup d'état.' Ultimately Governor General Michaëlle Jean allowed Parliament to be prorogued, the coalition fell apart, and a budget was accepted by the House in January 2009. However, widespread public uncertainty and confusion about the principles of government evident during the crisis revealed a grave lack of understanding about the mechanics and legalities of parliamentary democracy on the part of Canadians. With a foreword by former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson, Parliamentary Democracy in Crisis brings together journalists, political scientists, and leading constitutional experts to analyse the crisis and to discuss the nature of Canada's democracy. The contributors bring perspectives from both French and English Canada and cover all aspects of the crisis, including the prorogation of Parliament, the role of the governor general, the proposed Liberal-NDP coalition, the challenges of minority parliaments, and the now-evident rifts in the culture of Canadian democracy. Knowledgeable and comprehensive but still highly accessible, Parliamentary Democracy in Crisis provides a reasoned and timely response to Canada's parliamentary crisis of November 2008.

Since the Great Recession in 2008, the world has been going through a crisis of democracy that is changing the way we think about politics and society. Nowadays, it is ever more apparent that democracies have limitations and are susceptible to decline. This decline occurred with the expansion of powers of prime ministers and presidents, the increasing hostility against political opponents, the rise of ultra-right parties, and the growing political polarization. This book offers a fresh analysis of countries that have witnessed democratic decline such as Brazil, Mexico, Nigeria, Poland, and Spain. It also looks at examples of democratic innovations such as the use of digital politics (in Brazil and Hungary), the establishment of "democratic schools" (in Israel), the implementation of parenting norms (in Norway), and the response to domestic violence (in Germany and Iran). In addition, the book helps us learn more about how religion, the party system, and the growth of renewable resources affect democratic politics.

The recognition is growing: truly addressing the problems of the 21st century requires going beyond small tweaks and modest reforms to business as usual—it requires "changing the system." But what does this mean? And what would it entail? The New Systems Reader highlights some of the most thoughtful, substantive, and promising answers to these questions, drawing on the work and ideas of some of the world’s key thinkers and activists on systemic change. Amid the failure of traditional politics and policies to address our fundamental challenges, an increasing number of thoughtful proposals and real-world models suggest new possibilities, this book convenes an essential conversation about the future we want.

This book presents, for the first time in the English language, Marcel Gauchet’s interpretation of the challenges faced by contemporary Western societies as a result of the crisis of liberal democratic politics and the growing influence of populism. Responding to Gauchet’s analysis, international experts explore the depoliticising aspects of contemporary democratic culture that explain the appeal of populism: neo-liberal individualism, the cult of the individual and its related human rights, and the juridification of all human relationships. The book also provides the intellectual context within which Gauchet’s understanding of modern society has developed—in particular, his critical engagement with Marxism and the profound influence of Cornelius Castoriadis and Claude Lefort on his work. It highlights the way Gauchet’s work remains faithful to an understanding of history that stresses the role of humanity as a collective subject, while also seeking to account for both the historical novelty of contemporary individualism and the new form of alienation that radical modernity engenders. In doing so, the book also opens up new avenues for reflection on the political significance of the contemporary health crisis. Marcel Gauchet and the Crisis of Democratic Politics will be of great interest to scholars and postgraduate students of social and political thought, political anthropology and sociology, political philosophy, and political theory.

The essays in “The Crisis of American Democracy: Essays on a Failing Institution” seek to answer central questions about American democracy, such as: if American democracy is failing, what are the causes of this failure? What are the consequences? And what can be done to fix it? These standalone essays present diverse perspectives on some of the impediments to achieving a true democracy in the present-day United States of America, as well as prescriptions for overcoming these obstacles. Leading academics from across North America, contribute their perspectives on this timely debate.

In Volume III, as in Volumes I and II, the classic topics of reading are included--from vocabulary and comprehension to reading instruction in the classroom--and, in addition, each contributor was asked to include a brief history that chronicles the legacies within each of the volume's many topics. However, on the whole, Volume III is not about tradition. Rather, it explores the verges of reading research between the time Volume II was published in 1991 and the research conducted after this date. The editors identified two broad themes as representing the myriad of verges that have emerged since Volumes I and II were published: (1) broadening the definition of reading, and (2) broadening the reading research program. The particulars of these new themes and topics are addressed.

In Volume III, as in Volumes I and II, the classic topics of reading are included--from vocabulary and comprehension to reading instruction in the classroom--and, in addition, each contributor was asked to include a brief history that chronicles the legacies within each of the volume's many topics. However, on the whole, Volume III is not about tradition. Rather, it explores the verges of reading research between the time Volume II was published in 1991 and the research conducted after this date. The editors identified two broad themes as representing the myriad of verges that have emerged since Volumes I and II were published: (1) broadening the definition of reading, and (2) broadening the reading research program. The particulars of these new themes and topics are addressed.