The Revolt of the Elites and the Betrayal of Democracy

Written by Christopher Lasch

Narrated by David de Vries

In this challenging work, Christopher Lasch makes an accessible critique of what is wrong with the values and beliefs of America's professional and managerial elites. The distinguished historian argues that democracy today is threatened not by the masses, as José Ortega y Gasset (The Revolt of the Masses) had said, but by the elites. These elites—mobile and increasingly global in outlook—refuse to accept limits or ties to nation and place. As they isolate themselves in their networks and enclaves, they abandon the middle class, divide the nation, and betray the idea of a democracy for all America's citizens. This is Lasch's clarion call for a return to the virtues of community, responsibility, and religion.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Jul 20, 2017
• ISBN: 9781541475533

Reviews for The Revolt of the Elites and the Betrayal of Democracy

[Nadia B · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I liked occasional nuggets of truth and wisdom expressed with elegance. Overall I found the book rather boring, a bit too scholarly for the general public with lots of digressions which did not enlighten the reader about why elites are revolting.

[Jim Caldwell · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A useful set of observations which still apply many years after the book was written. However, it is a bit complex in its language and did not really arrive at a conclusion.

[Corey · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wicked, would buy print. THanks AgaIn Tantor, and thanks Mr Devries, even though you say 'Dubois' funny.

[nog_5 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

If Lasch were alive, he could point back to this book and tell you "I told you so." Whenever I have a conversation about globalism these days, I invariably bring this book up. The concentration of wealth in fewer and fewer hands and the loss of commitment to one's country are only a couple of the themes here. It's really pretty depressing, since things have gotten much worse than I think Lasch would have expected.

[mrtall_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Reading The Revolt of the Elites is liking watching a demolition crew in evening dress dismantle a tumbledown palace. Christopher Lasch takes on the crumbling façade of American society, and systematically lays bare its rotting foundations.

This book comprises a set of essays that are related thematically, and that progress smoothly. Lasch begins by questioning the increasing disconnect between the country’s ‘meritocratic’ elite and its disaffected general populace. He then drills down, seeking the roots of this deterioration in the country’s democratic functioning, examining racial politics, schools, the press, and the universities. He concludes with a reassessment of the role of faith in the nation’s history – and its future.

Lasch’s erudition is remarkable. He reads and comments intelligently on all manner of philosophers, social critics and political thinkers. Tellingly, on the last page of the book he’s quoting Flannery O’Connor, not Sigmund Freud.