Polyarchy: Participation and Opposition

Why this matters here

In Polyarchy, Dahl analyzes regimes that combine broad participation with institutionalized opposition—authority that must be contested, renewed, and limited rather than held as permanent possession. When Moral Seriousness Scales cites that tradition of institutional limits: roles that rotate, mandates that expire, decisions that require reauthorization. Dahl’s claim is about democratic polyarchy; the book’s inference is that harm is harder to normalize where legitimacy must be re-earned instead of inherited indefinitely.