The thought of Friedrich Nietzsche is often taught, but seldom sufficiently understood, and thus what ought to be most challenging to us about Nietzsche – that is, the rationalistic basis of his rejection of liberal democracy – is not squarely confronted. I propose to lay the ground for such a confrontation. / text

This dissertation attempts to answer the research question on whether there is a common pattern of democratic backsliding. Levitsky and Ziblatt’s theoretical model of democratic backsliding is utilized as the guiding theory. The theory suggests that Democratic Backsliding has three stages where different goals are attempted to be achieved. The goals are first to take over state institutions, thereafter to use these institutions to target political opponents and protect the government from criticism. The third stage concerns entrenching the political dominance. The research question is answered by a systematic comparison of Hungary, Turkey and Venezuela. The results are that each case does follow the suggested path of democratic backsliding, with certain differences. More emphasis is put on the media, election monitoring, and how the institutions are controlled. The institutions are often taken control over by hijacking the nomination process, a fact overlooked by the theoretical model. These aspects are not expanded on in the theoretical model, and this dissertation suggest adding these to the model.

The purpose with this essay is to find out if neo-fascist connection will change the next generations citizens (in this specific case ninth graders) opinions about a specific political party. In modern day Sweden, only one political party stands for political ideas that can be seen as neo-fascist (Sverigedemokraterna). What would happen if the next generation citizens saw this connection and how would they respond? That’s what this essay is all about, are the students “positive”, “negative” or “on changed” to a neo-fascist political party? The studies research type is mainly of a qualitative nature but quantitative elements occur. The data is coming from two classes of ninth graders that answered eight questions each. The questions remained the same for all students but with one crucial difference. One of the classes answered the questions before they had been informed of the neo-fascist connections that Sverigedemokraterna can be linked too. And the other class answered the questions after they had been informed. The difference in data seems to point out that the next generations citizens seem to think that it´s worse to be a fascist then a racist. It seems that if a political party is seen as racist party the image deters possible voters. Simultaneously the same racism that deter people also gain votes, therefore it could be said that racism has two faces. If you compare racism and fascism it seems like fascism don´t follow the same pattern.

MA (History) / Department of Development Studies / The study examines the process of democratic consolidation in South Africa since 1994. This study unpacks the trends, developments and challenges which have taken place since 1994 towards the entrenchment of democracy in the country. The research will explore the nature of the rule of the ANC in the light of efforts, successes and failures in consolidating democratic rule in the country. The major problem which prompted this study is that, claims of South Africa as a democratic state have not been scrutinised by academics, and this study seeks to question the validity of the phrase “New democracy” which is commonly used by both politicians and academics in referring to the government since 1994. The study will be informed by notions of democracy and will utilise the indicators of democracy to locate whether South Africa can be viewed as a true democracy, or if it offers some elements, but neglecting some of the key components of democracy. The other critical issue will be to determine the extent to which democratic institutions have been strengthened in the country. This will be basically a literaturebased study, which depends more on reviewing policies enacted by the government and determining if the policies entail democratic consolidation. The overall assumption is that more still needs to be done towards entrenching democratic institutions that address socio-economic inequalities that persist in the country. Theoretically the study builds from the liberal discourse and its fundamental notions of democracy and good governance

Nowadays liberal democracy is faced with a crisis bought mainly by the liberal-democratic elites with their approach and the politics they established during the period of boundless triumphalism in the 1990s. Sand castles, whether it was the inevitability of progress or capitalism as a miraculous elixir to all the ills of society at the time, built during this period, began to crumble like a house of cards. Associated with the financial crisis that erupted in the United States in 2007 it spread practically all over the world. The period of the global financial crisis has shown that the creation of a legal framework, building of a conscious civil society and the system of values on which the society is built and identifies with them, or the construction of a liberal-democratic identity fell behind economic transformation and economic growth after 1989 and the people's relationship to liberal democracy was built primarily on economic aspects. This created space for those who for many years hid rather in the shadows, on the edge of the spectrum of political power. A fraction of the liberal-democratic elites, with their approach and politics of a kind of arrogance of power and the style of labeling their opponents, have turned against them even those who a priori did not have a negative attitude...

After the destabilization of Iraq following the overthrow of Saddam Hussein by U.S. forces, Iraq had the opportunity to emerge as a democratic nation. This study explores the emerging concepts of democracy in Iraq during the roughly 13-year period between 2005 and 2018 as the country moved from Authoritarian (Guardianship) and Thin (Successorship) views of democracy to a Deep (Western) liberal view. I trace the evolution of democracy in Iraq by probing the possible influences of religious, cultural, historical, external, socioeconomic, and physical factors influencing these concepts of democracy, analyzing the elections held during the period, and interviewing Iraqis in the United States. In a religiously conservative society such as Iraq, understanding the basics of Iraqis' religion helps scholars better understand how Iraqis define and view democracy. In examining the bases for varying views of democracy among Iraqis, religion as a collective framework generates meanings, attitudes, beliefs, values, and purposes to help make sense of Iraqi political experience and shapes individuals' beliefs, behaviors, and ethical structures. Additionally, income, education, personal experiences, and religious attachment also help to shape their definition of democracy. Using scholarship about the theories of democracy, this study constructed measures of different aspects of its meaning among Iraqi individuals and political parties. Then, using data collected from primary and secondary sources (including interviews, statements of the political philosophies of active political parties, statements of party leaders, and sources such as books, articles, media reports, public discourse, websites, and blogs), I examined several expectations about the extent of variation in and the nature of Iraqis' definitions of democracy. Each group evidently manipulated its definition of democracy to protect its interests at the expense of its rivals. Based on the evidence examined, five key themes emerged: restoration of full Iraqi administration of the country; schism in the Shi'a house between the two religious centers of Qum (Iran) and Najaf (Iraq); collapse of the ruling party; fluidity of political realignments; a rise of secularisms; and the emergence of a robust social movement supporting a Western liberal democratic system. Competition over shared social and ideological terrain often intensified political struggles, especially the fierce clash between and within the Shi'a and Sunni communities and Islamists and leftist forces. Although the intensity of conflicting definitions of democracy diminished over the two elections held in 2014 and 2018, a more universal definition is still sought. A clearer and more stable meaning remains elusive despite growing consensus on the term. In sum, this study is far from the last word on how Iraqis define democracy, as it continues to evolve in theory and practice. / Doctor of Philosophy / Between 2005 and 2018, Iraq held five national elections, followed by a series of political crises surrounding conflicting understandings of democracy. This study follows the evolution of democracy in Iraq during this 13-year period, as the country moved from Authoritarian (guardianship) and Thin (successorship) views of democracy to a Deep (Western) liberal view. I trace the evolution of democracy in Iraq by probing the possible influences of religious, cultural, historical, external, socioeconomic, and physical factors on ideas of democracy, analyzing the elections held during the period and interviewing Iraqis in the United States. This project highlights the views of democracy espoused by Iraqi individuals and active political parties. The study investigated the conditional nature of ideological congruence within the political parties in Iraq that had religious preferences. Various Iraqi groups exhibited different levels of understanding of democracy based on their religions, personal experiences and levels of education and income. Using scholarship on democratic theory, I looked at Deep (Western) liberal (pluralism), Thin (Successorship, Sunni rule by consensus), and Authoritarian (Guardianship), Shi'a centralized authority views of democracy and explored whether and how differences the rules of thought in each view were associated with Iraqis' definitions of democracy and accompanying political dislocation and mistrust. I examined these views of democracy based on multiple data bases, interviews, television, newspapers, and blogs and found that oppressed groups and religious minorities more generally accepted liberal democracy even if it had been forcefully introduced by an occupier. Different democratic perspectives are often associated with antagonism toward and discord in the electoral process. Thus, the definitions of democracy from each community's perspective are some of the most important predictors of democratic acceptance by Iraqis.

No / The anticapitalist protests at Seattle and Genoa are dramatic symbols of a growing collective anger about the of a few multinational corporations. But there is more to anticapitalism than demonstrations: concepts like participatory democracy and economic solidarity form the heart of alternative but equally compelling visions. Hilary Wainwright, writer and long-time political activist, set out on a quest to find out how people are putting such concepts into practice locally and taking control over public power. Her journey starts at home, in east Manchester, where local community groups are testing Tony Blair¿s commitment to ¿community-led¿ regeneration by getting involved in the way government money is spent. In Newcastle, she joins a meeting of homecare workers and their clients to challenge the threat of privatization of homecare services in that city. In Los Angeles she talks to the people behind the community-union coalitions that have had major successes in improving the impoverished bus system and in winning a living wage for employees of firms contracted by the city. And in Porto Alegre she discovers the wider democratic potential of the participatory budget, the basis of investment decisions in many Brazilian cities. Local democracy and ¿people power,¿ it turns out, provided the foundations for a global alternative, as her visit to the World Social Forum reveals.

This study concerns the terms liberalism, the political, democracy, and liberal democracy focusing on the application of the terms in the discourse of two distinct political theorists: Carl Schmitt and Sheldon S. Wolin. I address the question of whether similarities exist between Schmitt and Wolin's theories? Specifically, are there similarities in their use of the terms listed above? Although both emphasize different aspects of the terms, I suggest they simultaneously share similar perspectives on them. In particular, I suggest that Schmitt and Wolin share in common attributes in their views on the purported problematic of liberal democracy. Furthermore, I suggest both theorists speak to the general concern that if the political cannot be realized, then democracy cannot be practice. / Master of Arts

The dominant construction of democracy on a global scale is in the liberal tradition. It is evident in the criteria which constitute democratic barometers in organisations like Freedom House, the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations and the World Trade Organisation. This study seeks to provide a third-order analysis of liberal democratic consolidation theory in order to highlight that its theoretical discourse and underlying structure is not necessarily compatible with the cultural values of the non-Western world using a critical discourse analysis. Democratic consolidation in the non-Western world may not necessarily mirror the theoretical model of liberal democratic consolidation. Given the hegemonic position of liberal democracy‘s criteria and its dominant discourse and role as a barometer of democracy, this study focuses on democratic consolidation in this tradition. It is primarily due to the perceived inability of non-Western states to consolidate their democracies in the liberal democratic tradition and by default, construct thriving liberal democracies. Present theories of liberal democratic consolidation theory deal with governmental, political organisational and societal aspects of liberal democracy. The level of change these theories propagate is all encompassing, and consequently one cannot merely study one aspect of liberal democratic consolidation theory, but needs to analyse the paradigm as a whole in order to explore its metatheoretical structure. It is in this light that the study conducts an appraisal of liberal democratic consolidation theory. The critique developed in this study is aimed at addressing a disparity that currently exists within contemporary consolidation of liberal democracy theory, namely a failure of producers of liberal democratic discourse to understand the philosophical and ideological undertone of liberal democratic consolidation‘s understructure. The study does not seek to conceptualise alternative criteria of democratic consolidation in the non-Western context, but focuses on liberal democratic consolidation theory, to demonstrate that its criteria is not necessarily an appropriate barometer to measure democracy in the non-Western world. / Political Sciences / D.Litt. et Phil. (African Politics)

The dominant construction of democracy on a global scale is in the liberal tradition. It is evident in the criteria which constitute democratic barometers in organisations like Freedom House, the International Monetary Fund, the United Nations and the World Trade Organisation. This study seeks to provide a third-order analysis of liberal democratic consolidation theory in order to highlight that its theoretical discourse and underlying structure is not necessarily compatible with the cultural values of the non-Western world using a critical discourse analysis. Democratic consolidation in the non-Western world may not necessarily mirror the theoretical model of liberal democratic consolidation. Given the hegemonic position of liberal democracy‘s criteria and its dominant discourse and role as a barometer of democracy, this study focuses on democratic consolidation in this tradition. It is primarily due to the perceived inability of non-Western states to consolidate their democracies in the liberal democratic tradition and by default, construct thriving liberal democracies. Present theories of liberal democratic consolidation theory deal with governmental, political organisational and societal aspects of liberal democracy. The level of change these theories propagate is all encompassing, and consequently one cannot merely study one aspect of liberal democratic consolidation theory, but needs to analyse the paradigm as a whole in order to explore its metatheoretical structure. It is in this light that the study conducts an appraisal of liberal democratic consolidation theory. The critique developed in this study is aimed at addressing a disparity that currently exists within contemporary consolidation of liberal democracy theory, namely a failure of producers of liberal democratic discourse to understand the philosophical and ideological undertone of liberal democratic consolidation‘s understructure. The study does not seek to conceptualise alternative criteria of democratic consolidation in the non-Western context, but focuses on liberal democratic consolidation theory, to demonstrate that its criteria is not necessarily an appropriate barometer to measure democracy in the non-Western world. / Political Sciences / D.Litt. et Phil. (African Politics)