One of the most prominent political philosophy scholars in America, Dr. Harvey C. Mansfield is the William R. Kenan, Jr., Professor of Government at Harvard University, where he studies and teaches political philosophy.

He has written on Edmund Burke and the nature of political parties, on Machiavelli and the invention of indirect government, in defense of a defensible liberalism and in favor of a Constitutional American political science. He has also written on the discovery and development of the theory of executive power, and has translated three books of Machiavelli’s and (with Delba Winthrop) Tocqueville's Democracy in America. He has also published a book on manliness, as well as an introduction to Tocqueville.

This lecture engages with the ideals of democracy and meritocracy through the lens of great political theorists. Highlighting democracy as both a form of government and an endpoint aiming for equality and freedom, the speaker delves into the intricacies of how aristocratic institutions can paradoxically serve as a means to achieve democratic ends.

Visit the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government: https://constudies.nd.edu/

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The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the University of Notre Dame, the College of Arts and Letters, or the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government.

Recorded April 26, 2023 at the University of Notre Dame