1st Edition
Council Democracy Towards a Democratic Socialist Politics
1. Council Democracy: Towards a Democratic Socialist Politics [James Muldoon] Part I: The Councils in Historical Perspective 2. The Development of Workers’ Councils: Between Spontaneity and Organisation [Donny Gluckstein] 3. Rediscovering the Hamburg Workers’ and Soldiers’ Councils [Gaard Kets and James Muldoon] Part II: Councils, the State and the Problem of Socialisation 4. In Defence of Council Democracy [Gabriel Wollner] 5. Council Democracy and the Socialisation Dilemma [Nicholas Vrousalis] 6. A Theory of Council Republicanism [Michael J. Thompson] Part III: The Councils in Radical Democratic Theory 7. The Councils as Ontological Form: Cornelius Castoriadis and the Autonomous Potential of Council Democracy [Christopher Holman] 8. Hannah Arendt, the Council System, and Contemporary Political Theory [Shmuel Lederman] 9. The Self-Limiting Revolution and the Mixed Constitution of Socialist Democracy: Claude Lefort’s Vision of Council Democracy [Benjamin Ask Popp-Madsen] Part IV: Beyond the Councils 10. After the Councils: Opposing Domination and Developing Democratic Agency [John Medearis] 11. The Case for Workplace Democracy [David Ellerman] 12. The Legacy of Workers’ Councils in Contemporary Social Movements [Dario Azzellini]
Biography
James Muldoon is a lecturer in political science at the University of Exeter. His main research interests are in democratic theory, socialism and the history of political thought. His work has appeared in History of Political Thought, Political Studies, Theory, Culture & Society, Constellations and Critical Horizons.
'This fine collection answers an urgent need to take up the challenge of transforming capitalist market relations as part of the task of envisioning new modes of democratic politics. The authors draw on an archive—the theory and history of council democracy—that Western political theory has mostly overlooked but that provides today’s protest movements with new institutional models and a new confidence in the possibilities for large-scale social transformation.' - Lisa Disch, Professor of Political Science and Women’s Studies, The University of Michigan
'With the rising profile of new and innovative democratic practices around the world, it is critical to revisit radical ideas from the not-so-distant past. This volume’s impressive appraisal of council democracy is a significant achievement. Its in-depth analysis will be of great interest to those concerned with democracy’s potential in contemporary capitalism, the extension of democracy into social and economic life, and the future of the political left.' - Michael Saward, Professor of Politics and International Studies, University of Warwick
