Democratic model

Author: Herder (English)
Translator: Yan Jirong and others
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features:
Fragment: It is worth remembering that, in Plato's view, or more generally in ancient Greek thought, the freedom guaranteed by the state, beyond enabling individuals to fulfill their roles in the world, held little significance for the individual itself. As a critic rightly pointed out: such a theory "is entirely different from theories that describe social relationships based on [contracts or agreements between individuals as 'individuals'] and further believe that the state primarily serves to maintain chosen freedom." [27] The latter idea began to dominate the tradition of liberalism in the 17th century and would certainly have been cursed by Plato. He defended the idea of harmonious unity between the "public" and the "private," arguing that the state exists to ensure citizens can practice their calling. The views articulated by Plato in The Republic were later revised in his subsequent works, especially in The Statesman and The Laws. These writings acknowledge that in the real state, as opposed to the ideal state, rule cannot be maintained without some form of consent and participation from the people. The importance of the rule of law as a way to limit the legitimate authority of the "public" power held by the philosopher-king was also affirmed. It is crucial that he proposed a theory of a "mixed state" combining monarchy and democracy. This theory foreshadowed several ideas later developed by Aristotle and Renaissance republicans. [28] Plato even invented a proportional voting system. Similar proportional voting systems were later elaborated upon by others, such as John Stuart Mill. However, Plato did not systematically develop these ideas; he merely introduced elements of democracy into the concept of an ideal ruling system. His attempt was entirely different from a completely new model of democracy. The classical model of democracy (see Model I) and the criticism of this model both had a lasting impact on modern Western political thought: the former served as an inspiration for many democratic thinkers, while the latter served as a warning about the dangers of democratic politics. However, neither the model of democracy nor the criticism of it had any direct theoretical or practical influence beyond the life of ancient city-states. It was not until the Italian Renaissance and the flourishing of Italian city-states that the model of democracy itself was reintroduced into European political thought, although the idea of citizen direct participation had not yet been fully reassessed, elaborated, or advocated in many aspects before Rousseau and later Marx and Engels. Like the criticisms leveled by other Greek political thinkers, Plato's criticisms have had a profound influence in recent times. For, as a critic rightly noted: his arguments about the moral limitations of democratic regimes "have never been surpassed." [29] How seriously to take his critical remarks and apply them to other models of democracy is something we must confront later. Of course, various views similar to Plato's in spirit have had great historical significance. As a critic of democratic theory rightly emphasized: "The great advantage of political thinkers lies in their unending ability to point out the decline of democratic constitutions, the chaos of democratic politics, and the moral corruption of democratic character." [30] Until the early 18th century, few authors who wrote extensively about their views considered democracy to be an ideal way to organize political life.