In this brief but powerful book, acclaimed political philosopher C.B. Macpherson sets out in bold relief the essence of liberal democracy, both as it is currently conceived and as it might be reimagined. Macpherson argues that from its beginnings liberal democracy has accepted the underpinning principle of capitalist societies, that the "market maketh man." If that remains the central assumption of liberal democracy, Macpherson declares, then as an organizing framework for society, liberal democracy has reached the end of its useful life. But if a broader concept of liberal democracy is accepted - "if [Macpherson writes] liberal democracy is taken to mean ... a society striving to ensure that all its members are equally free to realize their capabilities" - the great days of liberal democracy may yet lie ahead. The Wynford edition includes a new Introduction by Frank Cunningham of the University of Toronto.

C.B. Macpherson was a renowned writer and academic who held the position of Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. He was also an Officer of the Order of Canada and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Macpherson's books include Democracy in Alberta, The Political Theory of Possessive Individualism, Burke, and the Rise and Fall of Economic Justice, and Other Papers. He died in 1987.

C.B. Macpherson's profile page

Frank Cunningham is a professor emeritus of Philosophy and Political Science at the University of Toronto.

Frank Cunningham's profile page