Political Parties

Front Cover
Simon and Schuster, 1968 - 380 pages
In this book Michels analyzes the tendencies that oppose the realization of democracy, and claims that these tendencies can be classified in three ways: dependence upon the nature of the individual; dependence upon the nature of the political structure; and dependence upon the nature of organization. This edition, described by Morris Janowitz as a "classic of modern social science" and by Melvin Tumin as "the beginning of a tradition", offers a landmark study in political science. Following its original publication in 1910, the study and analysis of political parties was established as a new branch of science. Political Parties continues to be a foundation work in the literature and is a necessary addition to the libraries of contemporary political scientists, sociologists, and historians. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.
 

Contents

1
16
Democratic Aristocracy and Aristocratic Democracy
43
The Ethical Embellishment of Social Struggles
52
A Technical and Administrative Causes of Leadership
61
The Modern Democratic Party as a Fighting Party
78
The Need for Leadership felt by the Mass
85
The Political Gratitude of the Masses
92
Accessory Qualities Requisite to Leadership
98
Identification of the Party with the Leader Le Parti
220
Introductory The Class Struggle and Its Disintegrat
227
Analysis of the Bourgeois Elements in Socialist
238
Social Changes Resulting from Organization
254
The Need for the Differentiation of the Working
271
Labor Leaders of Proletarian Origin
277
Intellectuals and the Need for Them in the Working
293
Part FiveAttempts to Restrict the Influence of the Leaders
305

Accessory Peculiarities of the Masses
105
The Stability of Leadership
117
The Financial Power of the Leaders and of the Party
129
The Leaders and the Press
149
The Struggle Between the Leaders and the Masses
167
Bureaucracy Centralizing and Decentralizing Tend
188
Part ThreeThe Exercise of Power and Its Psychological
203
Bonapartist Ideology
212
The Postulate of Renunciation
312
Anarchism as Prophylactic
325
The Oligarchical Tendencies
331
Democracy and the Iron Law of Oligarchy
342
PartyLife in WarTime
357
Final Considerations
364
Index of Names
373
Copyright

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About the author (1968)

Robert Michels was a German-Italian sociologist known for his contributions to elite theory through the study of political behavior in intellectual elites. He is best known for his book Political Parties.

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