Democracy and Its Discontents: Philosophical Foundations, Tensions, and Critiques

Democracy is often regarded as the most legitimate form of political rule, yet its philosophical foundations remain contested. What justifies the rule of the many? Can democratic equality coexist with individual freedom? Does democracy embody the collective pursuit of the good or is it merely a mechanism for managing conflict? This course examines democracy as a philosophical problem, tracing its conceptual development from ancient Athens to modern liberal democracies. Through the works of Plato, Aristotle, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Alexis de Tocqueville, John Stuart Mill, Hannah Arendt, and John Rawls, we explore enduring questions concerning legitimacy, deliberation, representation, and the nature of political authority. We consider key tensions—between freedom and equality, knowledge and opinion, and unity and pluralism—and evaluate the most significant philosophical critiques of democracy. Ultimately, students are invited to reflect on whether democracy's value lies in its substantive outcomes, its procedural fairness, or its ability to accommodate human plurality and disagreement.