In this accessible and engaging book, JosZ Nun provides a comprehensive analysis of the theory and practice of democracy from ancient Greece to contemporary Latin America. The author's authoritative historical and comparative discussion of democracy is combined with his own evaluation of the conditions and possibilities for the development of genuinely democratic societies in our time throughout the world. All readers will benefit from Nun's insightful distinction between two visions of democracy-government of the people or government of the politicians-and their profound consequences.