ABSTRACT
It is a commonplace that the scale and complexity of modern societies make for difficulties in the realisation of the classical understanding of democracy as participation on an equal footing with other citizens in collective decisionmaking. The invention of institutions of representation is best seen as a direct response to the problems posed by mass society for the classical form of democracy. Parliamentary and congressional forms of democracy are the most familiar institutional expressions for us of the idea of democracy, but they are in important ways much weaker forms of democracy than the classical conception. While these forms have enabled the solving of some of the problems inherent in involving citizens of complex societies in the decision-making process, they are incapable of facilitating equality in collective decision-making. There are several reasons why this is so.
