An authoritative collection of the most important writings of an influential political thinker

Sheldon Wolin was one of the most influential and original political thinkers of the past fifty years. In Fugitive Democracy, the breathtaking range of Wolin’s scholarship, political commitment, and critical acumen are on full display in this authoritative and accessible collection of essays. This book brings together his most important writings, from classic essays to his late radical essays on American democracy such as "Fugitive Democracy," in which he offers a controversial reinterpretation of democracy as an episodic phenomenon distinct from the routinized political management that passes for democracy today. Wolin critically engages a diverse range of political theorists, and grapples with topics such as power, modernization, the sixties, revolutionary politics, and inequality, all the while showcasing enduring commitment to writing civic-minded theoretical commentary on the most pressing political issues of the day. Fugitive Democracy offers enduring insights into many of today’s most pressing political predicaments, and introduces a whole new generation of readers to this provocative figure in contemporary political thought.

These essays are stunning. No one speaks for democracy as Wolin does.
—Anne Norton, author of On the Muslim Question

This collection is long overdue. Fugitive Democracy is a book that every current and future political theorist and political philosopher should own.
—Melissa A. Orlie, author of Living Ethically, Acting Politically

Sheldon S. Wolin (1922–2015) was professor emeritus of politics at Princeton University. His books include Politics and Vision and Democracy Incorporated (both Princeton). Nicholas Xenos is professor of political science at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. His books include Cloaked in Virtue.