The future as a democratic resource

White, Jonathan ORCID: 0000-0002-4668-698X (2024) The future as a democratic resource. Perspectives on Politics. ISSN 1537-5927 (In Press)

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Abstract

Beliefs about the future shape attitudes, experiences and priorities in the present. This article explores the relationship between democracy and the expected world to come. As it argues, visions of the future are an important resource for democratic politics, as a way to put the present in critical perspective, to aid in the formation of a collective agent, and to consolidate commitment in adversity. Indirectly, they contribute also to the legitimacy of democratic institutions, shaping the exercise of citizenship and the capacity to contend with the flaws of representation. The democratic significance of the imagined future becomes all the more visible in today’s age of scepticism towards future-regarding politics, where speculative modes of thinking run up against the desire for certainty and precision.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2024 The Author
Divisions:	European Institute
Subjects:	J Political Science H Social Sciences
Date Deposited:	17 Dec 2024 08:57
Last Modified:	18 Dec 2024 09:24
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/126428

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