Who is the author of "Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy"?

Question

Accepted Answer

The correct option is 2:
Barrington Moore Jr.'s seminal 1966 work, "Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy: Lord and Peasant in the Making of the Modern World," is a classic text in comparative historical sociology and political science. The book explores the diverse routes major nations—specifically England, France, the United States, China, Japan, India, and Germany—took to modernity, identifying the class relations, particularly the relationship between landlords and peasants, that determined whether the final political outcome was democratic, fascist, or communist. Moore famously argued that "no bourgeois, no democracy," suggesting that the path a country follows is heavily influenced by how its agrarian structure is transformed during industrialization, establishing it as a key text for understanding political development and regime change.

The incorrect option is 1:
Jennifer Gandhi is a contemporary political scientist known for her work on authoritarian institutions, particularly her book "Political Institutions Under Dictatorship." While she researches related themes of dictatorship and political regimes, she is not the author of the foundational text "Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy." Her work focuses more on how dictators use institutions like legislatures and parties to maintain control and manage threats, offering a different analytical perspective than Moore's deep historical, agrarian-focused comparison.

The incorrect option is 3:
Hannah Arendt was one of the most influential political theorists of the 20th century, best known for her works focusing on totalitarianism, authority, and political action. Her major works include "The Origins of Totalitarianism" and "The Human Condition." Arendt’s analysis of totalitarianism, particularly Nazism and Stalinism, examines ideological and structural features of these regimes, but she is not the author of the comparative study on the origins of democracy and dictatorship penned by Moore.

The incorrect option is 4:
Carl Schmitt was a controversial and highly influential German political theorist, primarily active in the first half of the 20th century. He is famous for concepts such as the "concept of the political," which distinguishes between "friend" and "enemy," and his theories on sovereignty and emergency powers. Schmitt’s writings provide a critical perspective on liberalism and parliamentarianism and are often associated with authoritarian thought, but he did not write the specific socio-historical comparative work "Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy."