Week 9

To prepare for this Assignment:

• Review the article “Democracy, Nationalism and Culture: A Social Critique of Liberal Monoculturalism” in this week’s Learning Resources. Take note of critiques of democracy in the article.
• Review the articles “Plato’s Criticisms of Democracy in the Republic” and “Is Democracy Possible?” in this week’s Learning Resources. Pay particular attention to dissenting arguments about democracy.
• Think about why critiques of democracy might be an important element of democratic governance.
• Reflect on the role of critiques of democracy in reforming and improving democratic governance.
• Using the knowledge you have gained from this course, the Learning Resources for this week, and/or your own research on democracy, select two critiques of democracy for this Assignment.
• Consider (as they relate to governance and public policy) the validity of the critiques, their constructive or destructive nature, and how they might be rebutted.

The Assignment (3–5 pages):

• Briefly describe the two critiques of democracy that you selected.
• Evaluate them as follows (as they relate to governance and public policy):
  • Explain why and how the critiques might be valid and constructive.
  • Explain why and how the critiques might be invalid and destructive.
  • Explain how you might refute or support these critiques.
• Share insights and/or draw conclusions based on your evaluation of critiques of democracy.