DEMOCRACY MATTERS

Book Critique, C. West, Democracy Matters



Book Critique, C. West, Democracy Matters

The author's purpose

The author's purpose is to identify how the problems the country is having in relations to democracy. West argues that America has cloaked itself in myth and has made hypocritical claims to democracy. According to his diagnosis, what ails American democracy is a triple-layered attack of "free- market fundamentalism,""aggressive militarism," and "escalating authoritarianism." To West, the heartbeat of America is controlled by a plutocracy where "we've moved. The sons and daughters of the poor, he notes, fight a war, as family values and the importance of the community are replaced by constant consumerism that further fuels America's new Manifest Destiny toward the Mideast. West's prescription is "Socratic questioning,""prophetic commitment to justice," and reliance on the "tragic-comic commitment to hope," which can be seen in African-American art forms such as the blues and jazz, extending into the realm of hip-hop (Cornel, 2005).

The author's thesis

The Author's main idea can be understood in the vein of Socrates, West asks a question with immense significance for the pending democratic future of America: "Has not every major empire pursued quixotic dreams of global domination of shaping the world in its image and for its interest that resulting in internal decay and doom?" A sequel to "Race Matters,""Democracy Matters" is a timely analysis about the current state of democratic systems in America. While "Race Matters" deconstructed the ways in which institutionalized racism contributed to arrested development in the African-American community, "Democracy Matters" steps outside the microcosm of the black experience and into the macrocosm of the world.

Main observations

West's most strong points come from the spiritual realm as he compares Muslim fundamentalists to some Christian supporters of the Bush administration, who "proudly profess their allegiance to the flag and the cross not realizing that just as the cross was a bloody indictment of the Roman Empire, it is a powerful critique of the American empire." Most controversial is West's condemnation of the US support of Israel. Suggesting that American imperialism is one of the causes of the constant clash between Israelis and Palestinians, he calls for the creation of new Jewish and Islamic democratic identities. West's arguments become thin when he loses his narrow focus. Although his rhetoric can be meandering and full of tangents, usually those detours lead to revelation.

Religious aspects

West makes an audacious assessment of the relationship between the Christian Right and ...