Overview
- Interdisciplinary appeal to scholars in comparative politics, areas studies, American politics, Latin American politics, and political theory
- Offers a unique interpretation of Latin American and US politics that highlights the persistent role of concentrated economic power and patrimonialism
- Considers the continuity of oligarchic rule and its compatibility with democratic government
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Table of contents (7 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Modes of Oligarchic Rule in Latin America
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Front Matter
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Modes of Oligarchic Rule in the United States
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Front Matter
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Comparing Oligarchic Rule, South and North
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Front Matter
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Keywords
- oligarchy
- comparative politics
- Oligarchic Rule
- Latin American Politics
- US politics
- democratization
- democratic governments
- social anthropology
- political sociology
- economic development
- political development
- public policy
- international development
- patrimonialism
- economic power
- oligarchic power
- contemporary politics
- political history
- regulation
- democracy
About this book
This book explores the continuity of oligarchic rule in the Americas of the modern period, with a focus on the variable compatibility of oligarchic rule and democratic government. This focus sets the terms for a comparative inquiry that creates a novel perspective on the politics of Latin America and the United States alike. The continuity depends on the formation of a patrimonial State and a porous division between oligarchic interests and the public sphere of democratic politics; but it also depends on a capacity to adapt and change, and these changes are marked by successive and distinctive modes of rule in both Latin America and the United States. The book concludes with a description and comparison of the sequences and political characteristics of these modes of rule and discovers a recent and remarkable convergence of oligarchic rule in the Americas.
Reviews
“This is an engaging and thoughtful book that addresses the most central issues in the study of contemporary politics and offers a new interpretation of the politics of the Americas that highlights the persistence of oligarchic power and patrimonialism. Joe Foweraker draws on his considerable knowledge of the Americas and his capacity for elaborating big ideas to push our thinking forward. There is no book quite like this in terms of topic and scope.” (Gerardo L. Munck, Professor of Political Science and International Relations, University of Southern California, USA)
“This book offers a bold and compelling effort to compare the politics of Latin America and the United States within a single theoretical framework, effectively challenging the claim to American exceptionalism and the superiority of its democracy. Foweraker draws evidence from major works on political development, past and present, to deliver a lucid interpretation of what ails democracy in the Americas, both North and South. His diagnosis demonstrates the power of his explanatory framework.” (Evelyne Huber, Morehead Alumni Professor of Political Science, University of North Carolina, USA)
“Is the USA developing into an exclusionary oligarchy resembling the longstanding pattern prevalent in Latin America? In this brilliantly iconoclastic book, Joe Foweraker provides convincing evidence that in the USA the tensions between the inclusivity that comes from democratic control and the exclusivity that is the hallmark of oligarchy have been moving inexorably in favour of the latter. As in Latin America, US democracy is often little more than a veneer overlaying exploitative oligarchic power.” (David McKay, Emeritus Professor of American Government, University of Essex, UK)
Authors and Affiliations
About the author
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Oligarchy in the Americas
Book Subtitle: Comparing Oligarchic Rule in Latin America and the United States
Authors: Joe Foweraker
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-63146-8
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan Cham
eBook Packages: Political Science and International Studies, Political Science and International Studies (R0)
Copyright Information: The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-030-63145-1Published: 13 December 2020
eBook ISBN: 978-3-030-63146-8Published: 12 December 2020
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XIII, 126
Number of Illustrations: 1 b/w illustrations
Topics: Comparative Politics, Political Science, Political Sociology, Governance and Government