Getting to the General Will Rousseau Getting to the General Will

Can the Demos achieve the Common Good? Marie Jean Antoine Nicolas Caritat, the Marquis de Condorcet (hereafter, Condorcet) If we assume that people, on average, have a better than even chance of knowing what is in the common good, then allowing majority opinions to rule is an excellent way to serve the instrumental function of government. Condition 1: the average individual must have a better than even chance of being right. Condition 2: the average individual must be motivated to vote on the common good (and not, e.g. their private interests)

The Purpose of Education If children are brought up in common in the bosom of equality; if they are imbued with the laws of the state and the precepts of the general will; if they are taught to respect these above all things; if they are surrounded by examples and objects which constantly remind them of the tender mother and who nourishes them, of the love she bears them, of the inestimable benefits they receive from her, and of the return they owe her, we cannot doubt that they will learn to cherish one another mutually as brothers, to will nothing contrary to the will of society, to substitute the actions of men and citizens for the futile and vain babbling of sophists, and to become in time defenders and fathers of the country of which they will have been so long the children.

“General Will” vs. The “Will of All” Mixed motivations again General Will: What is good for the society as a whole? Will of All: What is the sum of individual interests? General will is “general in its object as well as its essence” Affects all citizens equally Laws should be general, not relative to individuals or distinct groups

Executive vs. Legislative: Checks and Balances The “sovereign” composes the legislature Only the electorate can make laws All laws are general in that they apply to all equally The executive branch “Elected Aristocracy” Responsible for administering the law in particular cases

Equality Economic inequality and other sources of factionalism should be reduced or eliminated None should be so poor that they are tempted to sell their votes None should be so wealthy that they are able to buy votes Differences in economic situation cause different experience and special interests There should be either no political parties (to eliminate factional conflict) or many political parties (to dilute factional conflict)

Censorship and the Civic Religion Official censors shape the cultural landscape Can the common good be achieved without censorship? Religion is essential to maintaining a “love of duty” To what extent is our willingness to forgo our private interests in favor of the common good linked with our religious commitments? Does the notion of a civic religion pose too great a threat to liberty?

Instrumental vs. Intrinsic benefits of democracy Focus on the general will shows a preference for instrumental goals Individual liberty (as ordinarily understood) is strictly regulated Civic religion and censorship Exclusion of women and/or other classes from the electorate “Positive freedom”: Living the life that the rational person would choose to live People must be “Forced to be free”

Challenges for Rousseau’s View Community Consensus vs. Pluralism and Diversity Minority opinions? Civil Disobedience and other forms of democratic dissent