Unbalanced commitments

Author: (American) Samuel Huntington
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features: Part of the "Political and Legal Philosophy" and "University Library" series, this collection selects and edits classic, significant, and textbook works in contemporary political and legal philosophy, focusing on representative schools of Western thought to provide Chinese readers with a comprehensive and accurate understanding of contemporary political and legal thought. It also includes influential representative works in the fields of politics, society, and law. When conditions are ripe, works reviewing China's representative political and legal philosophy will be published. Academic classics are not bound by time and can even become stronger over time. The reason for selecting Huntington's "The Unbalanced Commitment," published in 1981, is not only because this book remains a classic textbook in American university political science and political philosophy to this day, but also because the development of American politics over the past two decades has further validated and reinforced the fundamental viewpoints presented in the book. The American political system is characterized by a significant imbalance between its highly idealistic nature and the diverse, conflicting realities. Compared to organic Western societies like the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, the social composition of the United States as an immigrant nation is complex and fragmented. Americans may even fail to take pride in their national identity, natural resources, or culture, but it is their political nature—rooted in individualism, liberalism, and constitutional contractual democracy—that unites them and shapes their unique characteristics. They tirelessly strive for these ideals. This characteristic can explain many political struggles and real-world behaviors in the United States since its independence. As the author profoundly points out: "Americans cannot be themselves without believing in the American creed, and if they believe in it, they must necessarily oppose themselves. The more Americans engage in their national political beliefs, the more they become hostile and cynical toward their political system. This rift between ideals and the system leads to a paradox where the legitimacy of the U.S. government is both contrary to and aligned with the belief in American political ideals." The author reveals how multiple periods of fervent belief in American history have driven its institutional reforms, yet his ideological aspirations are not about being unconventional but about upholding classical values of freedom, individual rights, and limiting government power. Periodic political earthquakes have not led to revolutions against their own people but have instead spurred continuous social improvement, allowing different social forces to take turns on the stage, constantly overcoming societal flaws (though new problems continue to arise), thereby avoiding major class struggles and political revolutions. In fact, we can still see this rift between ideals and the system, as well as the arduous efforts to bridge it, in today's U.S. domestic and foreign policies and social changes. At the same time, the analytical methods and comparative perspectives revealed in this book undoubtedly provide valuable insights for understanding and researching the political culture, economic and social development, and intellectual progress of various countries.