Prehistory of populist constitutionalism: Difference between revisions
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Prehistory of populist constitutionalism (view source)
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If “''the safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato''”,<ref>Alfred North Whithead, ''Process and Reality: An essay in cosmology'', New York: The Free Press, 1978, p. 39.</ref> the most accurate assessment of the contemporary literature on populism would be that it is paraphrasing Aristotle – casually, wordily and –more or less– obliviously. But is it not better to seek the fountains than to follow the rivulets? The key element of populism (the distinction between the people and the elite) and the central point of populist constitutionalism (popular sovereignty taken to its conclusion) are already discussed in Aristotle’s ''Politics''.<br>
How different is a present-day right-wing populist from Cleon, “''the most violent man at Athens''”,<ref>
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Of course, the Philosopher himself exhibited populist tendencies occasionally. The following passage is revealing:
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