Plato and the trouble with (liberal) democracy

On October 25, 2017, Bard College Berlin, the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung and the Bundesverband Deutscher Stiftungen invite you to a panel discussion on the contemporary political situation in light of the account of democracy in Plato’s Republic.

The fairest of regimes
Plato and the trouble with (liberal) democracy

“Just like a many-colored cloak decorated in all hues,” democracy - Plato’s Socrates claims - “decorated with all dispositions, would also look the most beautiful of regimes, and many perhaps […] would judge it to be the fairest regime” (Rsp. 557c). Plato’s Republic seems to anticipate the way in which diversity is today both prized as inherently democratic and also questioned as basis for solidarity and political citizenship. In turning to the Republic as an illuminating point of departure, this panel aims to bring Plato's analytical lens to bear on our contemporary situation, and probe it for lessons it can teach us about the present dangers to constitutional democracies, and about resources for dealing with these dangers.

Participants:
Ulrike Guérot (Danube University, Krems)
Ira Katznelson (Columbia University, New York)
Ivan Krastev (Center for Liberal Strategies, Sofia)
Sergey Lagodinsky (Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, Berlin)

Moderator: Michael Weinman (Bard College Berlin)

Organized by Bard College Berlin in cooperation with the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung and the Bundesverband Deutscher Stiftungen,
in the frame of the program "Plato Goes Live" / 'Eine Uni - ein Buch' supported by the Stifterverband and the Klaus Tschira Foundation in cooperation with DIE ZEIT

Date:
Wednesday, October 25 at 7:00pm

Venue:
Forum Robert Bosch, Haus Deutscher Stiftungen, Mauerstrasse 93, 10117 Berlin (map)

Admission free

Registration required at communications@berlin.bard.edu