What makes a university essential to a democratic society?
Political theorist, classicist, and author Danielle Allen joins John Tomasi to explore the deep connections between democracy, disagreement, and higher education.
Drawing on her new book, The Radical Duke, Allen traces the origins of modern constitutional democracy to a network of radical thinkers in eighteenth-century Britain who fought for free expression, political transparency, and popular sovereignty. Their struggles, she argues, offer important lessons for the challenges facing democratic institutions today.
The conversation then turns to the modern university, Allen and Tomasi examine whether universities occupy a unique place in democratic life. They discuss why disagreement is essential to both truth-seeking and self-government, how institutions can create space for productive conflict, and what responsibilities colleges and universities have in preserving the civic capacities on which democracy depends.
In This Episode:
💥 The forgotten British origins of modern democracy
💥 The Radical Duke and the fight for political transparency
💥 How Edmund Burke and Thomas Paine emerged from the same intellectual movement
💥 Why free societies depend on disagreement
💥 Ruth Simmons' vision of the university as a place of "quarrel and opposition"
💥 The relationship between democracy and open inquiry
💥 Scientific consensus, dissent, and truth-seeking
💥 Why universities need spaces for constrained disagreement
💥 How institutions shape civic culture and democratic norms
💥 The unique role of higher education in sustaining a free society
About Danielle Allen:
Danielle Allen is the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard and Director of the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation and the Democratic Knowledge Project-Learn. A political philosopher and tech ethicist, she is a contributing columnist for The Atlantic and the 2020 Library of Congress Kluge Prize recipient for her work in political theory and civic education.
Her current work focuses on democracy renovation through institutional redesign and civic empowerment. She has authored several books, including Justice by Means of Democracy and the widely acclaimed Our Declaration. Her upcoming biography of an 18th-century reformer, The Radical Duke, is scheduled for release in 2026.
Beyond academia, Allen co-chairs the American Academy of Arts and Sciences' Our Common Purpose commission and leads the board at Partners In Democracy, advocating for a more inclusive social contract and robust democracy reform.
Follow Danielle: https://x.com/dsallentess
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