The Third Way

The Renewal of Social Democracy

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by Anthony Giddens

Polity Press

Due/Published March 2000, 166 pages, paper

ISBN 0745622674

New in paper (S00)

The idea of finding a "third way" in politics has been widely discussed--in the UK, the US, Continental Europe and Latin America. But what is the third way? Supporters of the notion haven't been able to agree, and critics deny the possibility altogether. Giddens shows that developing a third way is not only a possibility but a necessity in modern politics. The third way represents the renewal of social democracy in a world where the views of the old left have become obsolete, while those of the new right are inadequate and contradictory. It is, according to Giddens, an agenda that can rekindle political idealism.

Contents:

1. Socialism and After.
The death of socialism.
Old-style social democracy.
The neoliberal outlook.
The doctrines compared. 
The recent debates.
Structures of political support.
The fate of social democracy.
2. Five Dilemmas.
Globalisation. Individualism.
Left and right.
Political agency.
Ecological issues.
Third way politics.
3. State and Civil Society.
Democratising democracy.
The question of civil society.
Crime and community.
The democratic family.
4. The Social Investment State.
The meaning of equality.
Inclusion and exclusion.
A society of positive welfare.
Social investment strategies.
5. Into the Global Age.
The cosmopolitan nation.
Cultural pluralism.
Cosmopolitan democracy.
The European Union.
Market fundamentalism on a world scale.
Conclusion.
Notes.
Index