Making Constituencies: Representation as Mobilization in Mass Democracy
Public division is not new; in fact, it is the lifeblood of politics, and political representatives have constructed divisions throughout history to mobilize constituencies.

Since the turn of the twenty-first century, the idea of a divided United States has become commonplace. In the wake of the 2020 election, some commentators warned that the American public was the most divided it has been since the Civil War. Political scientists, political theorists, and public intellectuals have suggested that uninformed, misinformed, and disinformed voters are at the root of this division. Some are simply unwilling to accept facts or science, which makes them easy targets for elite manipulation. It also creates a grass-roots political culture that discourages cross-partisan collaboration in Washington.
 
Yet, manipulation of voters is not as grave a threat to democracy in America as many scholars and pundits make it out to be. The greater threat comes from a picture that partisans use to rally their supporters: that of an America sorted into opposing camps so deeply rooted that they cannot be shaken loose and remade. Making Constituencies proposes a new theory of representation as mobilization to argue that divisions like these are not inherent in society, but created, and political representatives of all kinds forge and deploy them to cultivate constituencies.
1138984178
Making Constituencies: Representation as Mobilization in Mass Democracy
Public division is not new; in fact, it is the lifeblood of politics, and political representatives have constructed divisions throughout history to mobilize constituencies.

Since the turn of the twenty-first century, the idea of a divided United States has become commonplace. In the wake of the 2020 election, some commentators warned that the American public was the most divided it has been since the Civil War. Political scientists, political theorists, and public intellectuals have suggested that uninformed, misinformed, and disinformed voters are at the root of this division. Some are simply unwilling to accept facts or science, which makes them easy targets for elite manipulation. It also creates a grass-roots political culture that discourages cross-partisan collaboration in Washington.
 
Yet, manipulation of voters is not as grave a threat to democracy in America as many scholars and pundits make it out to be. The greater threat comes from a picture that partisans use to rally their supporters: that of an America sorted into opposing camps so deeply rooted that they cannot be shaken loose and remade. Making Constituencies proposes a new theory of representation as mobilization to argue that divisions like these are not inherent in society, but created, and political representatives of all kinds forge and deploy them to cultivate constituencies.
34.99 In Stock
Making Constituencies: Representation as Mobilization in Mass Democracy

Making Constituencies: Representation as Mobilization in Mass Democracy

by Lisa Jane Disch
Making Constituencies: Representation as Mobilization in Mass Democracy

Making Constituencies: Representation as Mobilization in Mass Democracy

by Lisa Jane Disch

eBook

$34.99 

Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
WANT A NOOK?  Explore Now

Related collections and offers

LEND ME® See Details

Overview

Public division is not new; in fact, it is the lifeblood of politics, and political representatives have constructed divisions throughout history to mobilize constituencies.

Since the turn of the twenty-first century, the idea of a divided United States has become commonplace. In the wake of the 2020 election, some commentators warned that the American public was the most divided it has been since the Civil War. Political scientists, political theorists, and public intellectuals have suggested that uninformed, misinformed, and disinformed voters are at the root of this division. Some are simply unwilling to accept facts or science, which makes them easy targets for elite manipulation. It also creates a grass-roots political culture that discourages cross-partisan collaboration in Washington.
 
Yet, manipulation of voters is not as grave a threat to democracy in America as many scholars and pundits make it out to be. The greater threat comes from a picture that partisans use to rally their supporters: that of an America sorted into opposing camps so deeply rooted that they cannot be shaken loose and remade. Making Constituencies proposes a new theory of representation as mobilization to argue that divisions like these are not inherent in society, but created, and political representatives of all kinds forge and deploy them to cultivate constituencies.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780226804477
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Publication date: 11/12/2021
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 208
File size: 1 MB

About the Author

Lisa Jane Disch is professor of political science at the University of Michigan. She has published four books. Most recently, she coedited The Oxford Handbook of Feminist Theory and The Constructivist Turn in Political Representation.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Responsiveness in Reverse
Chapter 1. In Defense of Mobilization
Chapter 2. From the Bedrock Norm to the Constituency Paradox
Chapter 3. Can the Realist Remain a Democrat?
Chapter 4. Realism for Democrats
Chapter 5. Manipulation: How Will I Know It When I See It? And Should I Worry When I Do?
Chapter 6. Debating Constructivism and Democracy in 1970s France
Chapter 7. Radical Democracy and the Value of Plurality
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
Index
 
From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews