When Democracy Breaks: Studies in Democratic Erosion and Collapse, from Ancient Athens to the Present Day

"Democracy is often described in two opposite ways, as either wonderfully resilient or dangerously fragile. Curiously, both characterizations can be correct, depending on the context. In a relatively small number of countries, democracy has survived numerous shocks across many generations, while in others it has faltered or collapsed, whether after just a short time or a long period of apparent strength. Some broken democracies have reconstituted themselves as democracies once again, while others have notably failed to do so"--

'When Democracy Breaks' deepens our understanding of what separates democratic resilience from democratic fragility by focusing on the latter. The volume's collaborators - experts in the history and politics of the societies covered in their chapters - explore eleven episodes of democratic breakdown, from ancient Athens to Weimar Germany to present-day Russia, Turkey, and Venezuela. Strikingly, in every case, various forms of democratic erosion long preceded the final democratic breakdown. While each case of democratic decay is unique, the patterns that emerge shed much light on the continuing struggle to sustain modern democracies and to assess and respond to the threats they face.

"Democracy is often described in two opposite ways, as either wonderfully resilient or dangerously fragile. Curiously, both characterizations can be correct, depending on the context. In a relatively small number of countries, democracy has survived numerous shocks across many generations, while in others it has faltered or collapsed, whether after just a short time or a long period of apparent strength. Some broken democracies have reconstituted themselves as democracies once again, while others have notably failed to do so"--