Democracy and Solidarity

On the Cultural Roots of America's Political Crisis

By: James Davison Hunter

Narrated by: Sean Patrick Hopkins

The long-developing cultural divisions beneath our present political crisis.

Liberal democracy in America has always contained contradictions—most notably, a noble but abstract commitment to freedom, justice, and equality that, tragically, has seldom been realized in practice. While these contradictions have caused dissent and even violence, there was always an underlying and evolving solidarity drawn from the cultural resources of America’s “hybrid Enlightenment”.

James Davison Hunter, who introduced the concept of “culture wars” 30 years ago, tells us in this new book that those historic sources of national solidarity have now largely dissolved. While a deepening political polarization is the most obvious sign of this, the true problem is not polarization per se but 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. In the end, all political regimes require some level of unity. 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, for some, 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?

©2024 James Davison Hunter (P)2024 Audible, Inc.

Thorough and thoughtful

A fair and balanced treatment of the history, successes, failures, challenges, and future hope for the American experiment.

Thought Provoking

This book by far has been the best book of read in 2024. While offering a “solution” to the divide that afflicts our nation. It does give great insights to how we have arrived at this point. He presents in a very unbiased way how the country has hit this great divide. Morals where do we gain them? How do we hang on to them? We need this book to be presented to everyone over how democracy works.

A History of How We Became Polarized

This is a fascinating intellectual and cultural history of democracy in the United States. Hunter argues that, until recently, Americans had enough in common that they could work through their differences. He says we are polarized today because we can no longer draw on common ways of thinking about reality, knowledge, human beings, ethics and purpose. Hunter says that the problem of polarization can’t be fixed just by changing the procedures of democracy; change must happen at the level of deep culture. Hunter does not offer a detailed plan for fixing democracy, although he does offer some hopeful ideas at the end of the book, especially about the need for new kinds of leaders. He does a great job of explaining how we got into our current trouble.

THE Book To Understand Polarization

True accounting of the cultural roots of what worked in the past to construct our common story and how we need a new political and civic culture. Very compelling and balanced.

repetitive

how many times and ways can a person say that our underlying cultural differences can no longer support a rational political order. or can it be fixed? yes. or no. it's hopeless. Or no it isn't. It's been bad before. But not this bad. We need better leadership. But that won't happen. Over and over and over for 14 hours.