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Sheldon S. Wolin

シェルドン・エス・ウォーリン

Sheldon S. Wolin

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1922-08-04 （Chicago, Illinois, United States）
Died
2015-10-21 （Salem, Oregon, United States） age 93
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Born in Chicago → Raised in Buffalo, New York → Berkeley, California (residence/work) → Santa Cruz, California (residence/work) → Princeton, New Jersey (residence/work) → Salem, Oregon (died)

Career

Occupations
political theorist, political scientist, university professor, writer
Active Years
1950-2015
Affiliations
University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Santa Cruz, Princeton University, Oberlin College (faculty), University of Oxford (visiting), Cornell University (visiting), University of California, Los Angeles (visiting)
Memberships
American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Society for Legal and Political Philosophy (served as president)
Influenced By
Hannah Arendt, John Dewey, Max Weber, Karl Marx (intellectual influence)
Influenced
Cornel West, Wendy Brown, Corey Robin

Education

Oberlin College
Politics / Humanities (undergraduate)
Country: United States
Interrupted studies for World War II service; returned and completed undergraduate studies
Harvard University
Government / Political Science (PhD)
Degree: PhD
Year of Graduation: 1950
Country: United States
Dissertation: Conservatism and Constitutionalism: A Study in English Constitutional Ideas, 1760–1785

Awards

Rockefeller Foundation Fellow
Organization: Rockefeller Foundation
Result: 受賞
Guggenheim Fellow
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: 受賞
American Political Science Association Lippincott Award
1985
Work: Politics and Vision (1960 edition)
Organization: American Political Science Association (APSA)
Result: 受賞
David and Elaine Spitz Prize
Work: Politics and Vision
Organization: Conference on Political Thought
Result: 受賞
David Easton Award
Work: Tocqueville Between Two Worlds
Organization: unknown
Result: 受賞
Lannan Award for an "Especially Notable" Book
2008
Work: Democracy Incorporated: Managed Democracy and the Specter of Inverted Totalitarianism
Organization: Lannan Foundation
Result: 受賞
Fulbright Fellow
Organization: Fulbright Program
Result: 受賞
American Council of Learned Societies Fellow
Organization: American Council of Learned Societies
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Politics and Vision: Continuity and Innovation in Western Political Thought

1960 political theory / political philosophy

A major work that interprets the history of political thought to illuminate contemporary political problems. It emphasizes historical-minded inquiry and analyzes how political vocabulary and concepts change over time.

history of political thoughtauthority and justicecitizenship

Presence of the Past: Essays on the State and the Constitution

1989 political theory / essays

A collection of essays reflecting on American political traditions and contemporary problems, including critiques of Reaganism and reflections on the Constitution.

constitutionpolitical traditioncritical theory

Tocqueville Between Two Worlds: The Making of a Political and Theoretical Life

2001 political thought / biographical study

A study re-evaluating Alexis de Tocqueville's thought and life from historical and theoretical perspectives; regarded as one of Wolin's major works.

Tocqueville studiesdemocracy theoryhistory and thought

Democracy Incorporated: Managed Democracy and the Specter of Inverted Totalitarianism

2008 political philosophy / contemporary political critique

Analyzes the decline of democracy in contemporary American politics and introduces the concept of 'inverted totalitarianism', critiquing how bureaucracy and managerialism erode democratic life.

inverted totalitarianismmanagerialismcrisis of democracy

Fugitive Democracy and Other Essays

2016 essays / political theory

A collection centered on the idea of 'fugitive democracy' as intermittent, momentary civic practice; published posthumously.

fugitive democracycivic participationpolitical practice

Bibliography

  • Politics and Vision: Continuity and Innovation in Western Political Thought
  • The Berkeley Student Revolt: Facts and Interpretations (edited with Seymour Martin Lipset)
  • The Berkeley Rebellion and Beyond: Essays on Politics & Education in the Technological Society
  • Hobbes and the Epic Tradition of Political Theory
  • Presence of the Past: Essays on the State and the Constitution
  • Tocqueville Between Two Worlds: The Making of a Political and Theoretical Life
  • Democracy Incorporated: Managed Democracy and the Specter of Inverted Totalitarianism
  • Fugitive Democracy and Other Essays

Style & Themes

Literary Style
scholarly yet accessible proselayered argumentation combining historical context and theoretical analysis
Recurring Motifs
civic participation and participatory democracycritique of bureaucracy and managerialismdialogue between past legacies and contemporary politics

Legacy

Sheldon Wolin is acclaimed for his critical analyses of modern political theory, especially the crisis of democracy. Through works like Politics and Vision and Democracy Incorporated he connected the history of political thought with contemporary politics and influenced many scholars.

Academic Societies

  • American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • Society for Legal and Political Philosophy

Archives

  • Papers and related materials held in Princeton University archives and other institutional collections

Quotes

  • He emphasized that the study of political thought is "primarily a civic and secondarily an academic activity."
    Source: Essay "Political Theory as a Vocation" and other writings (1969)
  • He introduced the concept of "inverted totalitarianism" to describe contemporary forms of power.
    Source: Essays and Democracy Incorporated (2008)

Trivia

  • During World War II he served as a B-24 bombardier/navigator and flew 51 combat missions.
  • Married to Emily Purvis Wolin for over sixty years.
  • Founded the influential short-lived journal "democracy" (1980–83).