What is the primary goal of the reading?
There were many challenges for West while pursuing his education at Harvard University, but one of the most important aspects of his goals is to reach out to a larger audience. The primary goal of reaching out to the public is to rise above academic structures and, as a result, to express concepts and ideas from the past, present, and future races.
What is the reason for this?
This book's main argument appears to be unique while also appearing to be ancient and new at the same time. It harkens back to the ideas of some of history's most illustrious philosophers, including Aristotle and Plato (West 46). In this book, the author presents arguments regarding Commonwealth and how it has become the state of people who are soul's writ large. West explained that in democratic societies there is a threat that the desire of society members for constitutional requirements would overcome the state resources and eventually result in a tyranny (West 124).
Besides, West Cornel was apprehended about the challenges of the democratic society whereby the individuals are free and permit their desires to be more organized as well as inimical to the common advantage of the entire society (West 164). That is why West recommends the use of mixed or constitutional regime to enable American society over such challenges. Similarly, the same argument was postulated by Russell Kirk in his book titled as The Problem of Social Justice in which he argues that lack of order in the soul manifests itself in turmoil in public.
In the context of fighting for democracy and calling the society to advocate for order, West proceeds with his argument on page one hundred and one by teasing out the adaptation of the current 21 century. Applying the concept of 21 century to the current social, economic, financial as well moral crisis does not help such situations (West 176). Indeed, this is a new and better way of analyzing or rather looking at current and social order.
Given that intemperance is habitual, most individuals have become habituated to higher expectations as well as fulfillment, until ultimately, in the words of West Cornel: they started to consume the seed corn ethics, thus in this manner, self-interest for sure exhaust itself in hedonism.
What is your position?
Personally, democracy is real and inevitable, and war is a lie which comes in the form of refutation of every key argument that is presented to justify its course. The author has concentrated on the points that have broadly defended democracy and African-American as the disadvantaged while their efforts towards democracy are just as good. The book is very engaging and very informative which can be used to expose future lies regarding democracy and before the wars are deployed to justify any course.
In race and democracy matters, I have seen that the increasing nihilism in African-American as the lasting experience of dealing with the life of ever horrifying futility, and despair as attributed to the infiltration of market moralities and forces has led to the prevailing crisis of black leadership.
Work Cited
West, Cornel. Democracy Matters are Frightening in Our Time. Penguin, 2004.
