Book Description

Many observers of Western democracies - from Thomas Piketty in Capital in the Twenty-first Century to proponents of compagn finance reform in the United States - have lamented the rise of plutocracy, claiming that putatively democratic, capitalist societies are moving ever closer to rule by and for the wealthy. These critics' common understanding seems to be that the movement toward plutocracy is not only a pernicious and growing phenomenon, but also one that might have been prevented. In this sequel to his prize-winning book, The Eyes of the People, Jeffrey Edward Green advances the polemical argument that plutocracy is a permanent feature of any liberal-democratic regime. Green draws on philosophy, history, social science, and literature to ask what democracy can mean in a world where it is understood that socioeconomic status to some degree will always determine opportunities for civic engagment and career advancenent. Under this shadow of unfairness, Green argues that the most advantaged are rightly subjected to compulsory public burdens. And just as provocatively, he urges ordinary citizens living in politics permanently darkened by plutocracy to acknowlege their second-class status and the uncomfortable civic ethics that come with it - specifically an ethics whereby the pursuit of egalitarianism is informed, at least in part, by indignation, envy, uncivil modes of discourse, and even the occassional suspension of politcal care. The Shadow of Unfairness is likely to unsettle all sides of the political and educational systems will always be tainted by socioeconomic inquality. - from dust jacket.