Abstract

Based on his recent monograph, Anti-democracy in England 1570-1642 (Oxford University Press, 2022), Cesare Cuttica’s talk will provide a sketch of anti-democratic ideas in early modern England with the goal of stimulating the audience of the Stockholm seminar to reflect on some key contemporary political issues such as populism, fake news, the role of religion in democracies. Cesare’s presentation will show that anti-democratic critiques were addressed at 'popular government' as a regime that empowered directly and fully the irrational, uneducated, dangerous multitude; will explain why and how criticism of democracy was articulated in England and in Europe at the time; and will argue that the early modern era is far more relevant to the development of democratic concepts and practices than has hitherto been acknowledged. Most importantly, Cesare’s paper will say something about the importance of re-evaluating the role of religion and cultural factors in the history of democracy and of political ideas more generally. Ultimately, Cesare’s talk intends to offer a novel analysis of a precious portion of Western political reflection and an ideal platform to discuss the legacy of principles that are still fundamental today. 
 
Cesare Cuttica is Lecturer in British History at the Université Paris 8 and a member of the Centre for Intellectual History at the University of Helsinki. He has published a monograph on John Locke’s main target Robert Filmer and patriarchalism; edited four volumes of essays on various topics (including the idea of crisis); and written articles in the field of the history of ideas in early modern Britain and Europe as well as essays about the practice of history-writing, notably about the methodology of intellectual history.