Sure, It’s a Republic, Not a Democracy—But What Does That Mean?

David Lay Williams will give a Constitution Day lecture titled “Sure, It’s a Republic, Not a Democracy—But What Does That Mean?” at Ursinus College on October 1.

David Lay Williams is a Professor of Political Science and a Pre-Law Advisor at DePaul University, where he teaches and conducts research in political theory, especially the history of political thought. He is also an affiliate at the University of Chicago’s Stone Center for Research on Wealth Inequality and Mobility. Williams is the author of Rousseau’s Platonic Enlightenment (2007),​ Rousseau’s ‘Social Contract’: An Introduction (2014) and The Greatest of All Plagues: How Economic Inequality Shaped Political Thought from Plato to Marx (2024), as well as numerous articles on thinkers ranging from Plato to Jürgen Habermas and topics such as democratic theory, economic inequality, and moral psychology.

Registration for this event is requested.