Political Enthusiasm : Partisan Feeling and Democracy’s Enchantments

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Poe, Andrew. (2022). Political Enthusiasm : Partisan Feeling and Democracy’s Enchantments Manchester University Press.
AuthorsPoe, Andrew
Abstract

Enthusiasm has long been perceived as a fundamental danger to democratic politics, with many regarding it as a source of instability and irrationalism. Such views can make enthusiasm appear as a direct threat to the reason and order on which democracy is thought to rely. But such a desire for a sober and moderate democratic politics is perilously misleading and ignores the emotional basis on which democracy thrives.

Enthusiasm in democracy works to help political actors identify and foster radical changes. We feel enthusiasm at precisely those moments of new beginnings, when politics takes on new shapes and structures. Being clear about how we experience enthusiasm, and how we recognize it, is thus crucial for democracy, which depends on the sharing of power and the alteration of rule.

This book traces the shifting understanding of enthusiasm in modern Western political thought. Poe explores how political actors use enthusiasm to motivate allegiances, how we have come to think on the dangers of enthusiasm in democratic politics, and how else we might think about enthusiasm today. From its inception, democracy has relied on a constant affective energy of renewal. By tracing the way this crucial emotional energy is made manifest in political actions - from ancient times to the present - this book sheds light on the way enthusiasm has been understood by political scientists, philosophers, and political activists, as well as its implications for future democratic politics.

Keywordspolitical theory; democracy; enthusiasm; emotion; political philosophy
ISBN9781526156914
Web address (URL)https://manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/international-studies/9781526156914/political-enthusiasm/
Open accessPublished as non-open access
Research or scholarlyResearch
Page range1
234
Publisher's version
License
All rights reserved
File Access Level
Controlled
Output statusPublished
Publication dates
PrintApr 2022
Publication process dates
Deposited26 Sep 2024
Additional information

Copyright © Andrew Poe 2022

Year01 Jan 2022
PublisherManchester University Press
Place of publicationUnited Kingdom
Edition1st
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https://acuresearchbank.acu.edu.au/item/90y8y/political-enthusiasm-partisan-feeling-and-democracy-s-enchantments

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