Democracy and Solidarity: On the Cultural Roots of America's Political Crisis

The long-developing cultural divisions beneath our present political crisis have largely dissolved, leading to a deepening political polarization and the absence of cultural resources to work through what divides us. James Davison Hunter's new book argues that if liberal democracy cannot be generated organically, it will be imposed by force, and what cultural resources will support it in the future?

Format: Hardback
Length: 504 pages
Publication date: 25 June 2024
Publisher: Yale University Press

Liberal democracy in America has always been characterized by contradictions, notably a noble but abstract commitment to freedom, justice, and equality that has rarely been realized in practice. These contradictions have sparked dissent and even violence, but there has always been an underlying and evolving solidarity drawn from the cultural resources of the Americas' "hybrid Enlightenment." However, James Davison Hunter, who introduced the concept of "culture wars" thirty years ago, argues that those historic sources of national solidarity have largely dissolved. While political polarization is the most obvious sign of this, the true problem lies in the absence of cultural resources to work through what divides us. The destructive logic that has filled the void only makes bridging our differences more challenging.

All political regimes require some level of unity, and if it cannot be generated organically, it will be imposed by force. Can America's political crisis be fixed? Can an Enlightenment-era institution, liberal democracy, survive and thrive in a post-Enlightenment world? If salvaging the older sources of national solidarity is neither possible sociologically nor desirable politically or ethically, what cultural resources will support liberal democracy in the future?

These are critical questions that require careful consideration as we navigate the complex and evolving political landscape of the United States and the world.

Weight: 894g
Dimension: 167 x 243 x 37 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780300274370