The Birth of Liberalism and Radical Democracy: Locke and Rousseau
The Birth of Liberalism: John Locke (1632-1704)
The Political Role of Ownership in Building Consensus and Democracy
John Locke, the empiricist philosopher known for his assertion, “there is nothing in the intellect that has not previously been in the senses,” also likened a child’s mind to “wax, forming and shaping as you want, a blank slate.”
According to Locke, the human mind at birth is like a blank page, devoid of any innate ideas, including the concept of God. Knowledge originates from simple ideas derived from sensory experience, with complex ideas arising from the combination and merging of these simpler concepts.
This notion of progress challenged the prevailing Christian worldview. Furthermore, Locke’s emphasis on individualism aimed to liberate individuals from societal constraints, granting them the right to interpret the universe according to their own understanding. This perspective undoubtedly contributed to the Reformation.
Locke’s Influence on Liberal Doctrine
Locke paved the way for the bourgeois doctrine of his time – liberalism. His work laid the foundation for the principles of liberal democracy, emphasizing individual rights. These principles, considered natural, inalienable, and inherent, were later enshrined in the Declaration of Human Rights and shaped the modern states that emerged from the bourgeoisie’s rise to power.
Locke’s political philosophy diverged from Thomas Hobbes’s interpretation of human nature. He viewed humans as inherently good and cooperative, rather than inherently selfish and prone to conflict. While political stability remained a cornerstone of his thought, Locke was less apprehensive of anarchy than Hobbes, believing in an underlying stability within the social order.
Religion held significance in Locke’s thinking. However, as a Protestant influenced by the Renaissance, he favored rationality and simplification of religious dogma. He advocated for tolerance of religious dissent, rejecting the notion of inherent human sinfulness and embracing a more optimistic and worldly perspective on human nature.
Locke opposed Hobbes’s concept of a state where civil and religious authority were intertwined. Despite his advocacy for religious tolerance, he believed the state should intervene to prohibit doctrines that threatened public peace.
Democracy “Radical”: Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)
The Restoration of the Community: Rousseau and the Critique of Liberal Ideology
Rousseau’s thought can be categorized into three major themes:
1. Critique and Condemnation of Civilization
Rousseau offered a comprehensive critique of the idea of civilizational progress in his two Discourses. In his Discourse on the Sciences and Arts (1750), he argued that progress does not alleviate the human condition but rather correlates with increased depravity and corruption.
In his Discourse on the Origin and Foundations of Inequality of Men (1755), Rousseau posited that humans are naturally equal. However, as societies evolve and become civilized, natural inequalities are replaced by artificial and politically imposed ones. These inequalities are exacerbated by laws designed to benefit the wealthy. Progress and civilization, therefore, contribute to a growing disparity between the rich and poor, the powerful and weak, and masters and slaves.
Rousseau contrasted feeling with reason and championed the importance of morality over science. In response to the inequality and coercion prevalent in 18th-century France, he advocated for a social order aligned with natural laws, which he believed were violated by the existing social organization. His theoretical framework centered on the relationship between society and the individual, emphasizing the inherent goodness of humanity corrupted by a society that contravened natural laws.
According to Rousseau, a society founded on social inequalities, like the France of his time, contradicted human nature, was irrational, and opposed freedom. This idea is encapsulated in his famous phrase, ‘man is born free and everywhere he is in chains’.
2. Proposal for the Defense of Freedom and Equality
Rousseau’s defense of inalienable freedom and equality is intertwined with his theory of popular sovereignty, as articulated in The Social Contract (1762).
In this work, Rousseau envisioned a political solution that would facilitate societal reform. He proposed a social contract where individuals surrender their rights to the community in exchange for civil rights and citizenship. He emphasized that these rights, like the contract itself, cannot be imposed by force but must be based on free consensus.
Under this contract, individuals possess a will as citizens, directed towards the common good, and as individuals, pursuing their own interests. However, they also participate in a general will that prioritizes the common good over individual interests. Because the general will supports both the individual and the collective, individuals remain as free as they were in the state of nature. Therefore, opposition to the general will is considered detrimental, and those who reject the contract are “forced to be free.” This controversial phrase has led to accusations of totalitarianism against Rousseau.
3. The Search for Meaning
In his Discourses, Rousseau advocated for a return to the natural state, a seemingly idyllic primitive existence. However, he acknowledged the development of a civilization that had lost its moral compass.
He proposed a non-dogmatic “civil religion” based on simple truths, rejecting intolerance and promoting genuine citizenship.
Rousseau’s triadic conception can be summarized as follows:
