Demokrácia: Lehetőségek és korlátok
The Prospects and Limits of Democracy

Summary/Abstract: Democracy is the key concept for our contemporary political practices, and its roots can be traced back to classical Greek – primarily Athenian – politics. Despite the signifi cant differences, classical political thought may serve as a valuable tool for reinterpreting contemporary democratic ideas in the new era of instability of democratic values. In classical democracy the public and the political are intertwined, and each citizen has equal access to the realm of politics. As a result there are plenty of modes and opportunities for political action available to them, which makes participation in politics a way of life. The power of the people – as expressed in the concept of democracy – means both the ’capacity to do things’ (in the words of Josiah Ober), that is, initiating politics in the common realm, and at the same time the responsibility for the decisions made there.

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