Concepts of Democracy, 1500-1800

Colloquium, Friday 4 May 2012
Hosted by the Early Modern Research Centre and the Legacy of Greek Political Thought network, University of Reading.

This colloquium will consider early modern perspectives on 'democracy' and 'popularity' from across the political spectrum, as well as opening up questions about the relationship of early modern political practices to these often pejorative concepts. Some papers will focus in on the usage of the terminology and its classical associations, while others will be more concerned with questions of actual or proposed political practice, and its relationship to assumptions about democracy or popularity. We hope to interrogate overly neat alignments of republicans and radicals with 'democracy' as a concept or a practice, and take seriously the content and connotations of 'democracy' even when it is used as a negative term.

Speakers include Mark Knights, Phil Withington, Cesare Cuttica, Joanna Innes and Mark Philp.

Lunch and refreshments will be provided. Fee: £15 (£10 students and unwaged)

Booking: contact Nina Aitken, n.l.aitken@reading.ac.uk.

For further information, including a programme and booking form, please visit the Reading EMRC website: http://www.reading.ac.uk/emrc/events/emrc-events.aspx