Department of Political Science Center for Middle Eastern Studies Rutgers University Why Democracy? The History and Development of a Concept Eric Davis.

Department of Political ScienceCenter for Middle Eastern Studies

Rutgers University

Why Democracy? The Historyand Development of a Concept

Eric Davishttp:// fas-polisci.rutgers.edu

[email protected]://new-middle-east.blogspot.com/

Democracy InstituteWashington Township High School

October 4-5, 2012


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“It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except

all the others that have been tried.” Winston Churchill, Nov. 1947

“I believe in democracy, because it releases the energies of every human being

Woodrow Wilson, Sept, 1912


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Why is democracy a misunderstood concept?

Democracy – demo (Greek for the people) and kratia (rule by, namely “rule by the people”)

Why do so few students understand and show an interest in the concept?

What can be done to stimulate student interest in democratic institutions and processes?

Under what conditions does democracy thrive and under what conditions does it falter?

What are the challenges currently facing American democracy?


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Democracy’s social requisites

Democracy is a fragile type of political system A democracy requires its citizens to share a

national identity and national goals To sustain itself, democracy requires an

informed and committed citizenry Democracy is a system based on contestation Democracies cannot survive without struggle Democracies require an active civil society


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An exercise in imagination


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Building a democracy from scratch

Why should students be interested in the concept of democracy?

We can stimulate their interests by asking them to imagine a group of students like themselves being stranded on a desert island

What would they do? How would they sustain themselves over time?


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Building a democracy from scratch Unless they decided that life would be every

person for her/himself, students would face the problem of social organization

They would need to organize themselves as a community

They would be faced with a number of decisions which all societies face – how do all the members divide up critical social tasks?


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Democracy and choice Students could decide that their new mini-society

would be organized as a democracy Some students would be administrators (leaders) and

others citizens (the ruled) To have a democracy, the administrators would need

to report to the larger group on the decisions which they made and the reasons why they made them

Or the group could choose to delegate complete authority to the administrators, allowing them to establish authoritarian rule – a dictatorship in effect


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Core concepts of democracy


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Key concepts students need to learn

Social stratification – we all occupy different roles when we choose to live in a social setting

Citizenship – once we opt to live socially, we become citizens and receive benefits

Civic responsibility – with citizenship benefits also comes social responsibilities

Political participation – citizen participation is central to a society’s effective functioning


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Key concepts students need to learn Informed choice – citizens can only receive benefits

and fulfill their civic responsibilities if they have access to necessary information

Checks and balances – citizens require mechanisms to control those who rule them

Institutions – these are the “rules of the game” which determine how politics functions

Elections – this institution allows citizens to decide periodically to keep or reject their leaders


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Key concepts students need to learn

Legitimacy – when citizens feel that those who rule them have authority and ought to be obeyed

Minority rights – the dominant opinion(s) in society should never lead to the “tyranny of the majority”

Rule of law – everyone should be judged equally before the law which should not discriminate against citizens based on race, gender, religion, national origin, or political ideology


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Core concepts of democracy A true democracy must allow all (legal) views

to be expressed in society Democracy requires citizens to have certain

liberties: freedom of expression, assembly, religion (or atheism), property rights, and to be treated fairly according to the rule of law

Democracies must now discriminate against its citizens based on race, gender, national origin or social class – all citizens are equal


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The origins of democracy


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The contributions of ancient Mesopotamia Early components of democracy developed

long before the Greeks in classical Athens The idea of democracy began in the “land

between the two rivers” or what is also know as the Fertile Crescent, i.e., present-day Iraq

Ancient Iraq developed several firsts: First use of term “freedom” as we understand

it today, first parliament, and first example of a parliament controlling the executive branch


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The contributions of ancient Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia saw development of first language (Cuneiform)

First comprehensive legal code in 1772 BCE Hammurabi’s code comprises 282 laws and

still is part of most modern legal systems today The longest known ancient text, Hammurabi’s

Code shows concern for society’s less fortunate members


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Example of cuneiform writing as developed byMesopotamian merchants

The 5th Law: If a judge try a case, reach a decision, and present his judgment in writing; if later error shall appear in his decision, and it be through his own fault, then he shall pay twelve times the fine set by him in the case, and he shall be publicly removed from the judge's bench, and never again shall he sit there to render judgment.

Hammurabi’s Code (282 laws)


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Bas-relief of Hammurabi in the U.S. House of Representatives chamber

Hammurabi onSupreme Court frieze

Hammurabi’s impact on the US government


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The development of democracy


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The Athenian polis Athenian Polis was famous for its direct democracy Americans can find the origins of their own New

England town meetings in ancient Athens Athenian democracy lasted from 510 BCE to 338

BCE when Macedonians defeated Athens at the Battle of Chaeroneain

Athens was unique since other Greek city-states, e.g., Sparta, did not develop democratic systems


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The Acropolis – artist rendering and contemporary image


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What were the polis’ qualities? The polis developed around the Acropolis which

was originally built as a protective fortress Participation in Athenian democracy was limited Membership in the polis was hereditary and could

not be transferred, i.e., it was defined by blood Politics was dominated by male citizens; women,

non-property owners and slaves were excluded Only 10% of polis’ males could hold office

(estimated 14,000 of 140,000 inhabitants)


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What were the polis’ qualities? Polis was organized around the agora (market) Agora became the polis’ intellectual center

where important political discourse occurred Citizens had duties but no rights They debated each other in public assemblies,

indicating a commitment to the polis Polis was small – Plato said ideal size would

be a population of 5040 adults


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What were the polis’ qualities?

Citizens were linked by blood and family All citizens joined in political, religious, legal,

intellectual, artistic, and athletic activities A key quality of the polis – civic participation A vibrant civil society existed in which a

strong sense of community developed Still, majority of inhabitants were excluded

from public life


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Why is Greek tradition so important? It is not only due to the political institutions and

processes alone It is more due to ideas of the Greek thinkers in The Republic, Plato asked: what is the nature of

the just society? Socrates developed the Socratic method. In The Politics, Aristotle wrote a treatise on different forms of government

Athens produced great playwrights, historians, scientists and mathematicians


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The Republican tradition


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The Roman Republic The Roman Republic lasted from 509 BCE until 27

BCE (others argued that Julius Caesar’s assassination in 44 BCE ended the Republic)

Republic: Res Publica or Commonwealth Ended with Senate granting Octavian (Caesar

Augustus) dictatorial powers in 27 BCE Importance of Republic was the form of government

it bequeathed to the world Idea of the Republic contrasts with the polis because

the size of the Roman Empire did not allow for direct democracy


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The Roman Republic Overthrow of Roman monarchy in 509 BCE marked

the beginning of Republican period The Roman Republic’s most important contributions

to democracy are its institutions Most renowned was the Roman Senate which was

designed to be more structured than Athenian polis Second most important institution was its legal

system, including an unwritten constitution Key idea in Roman Republic was that ultimate

sovereignty lay with the people


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The Curia Julia - Roman Senate building


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Comparing Athens and the Roman Republic

Both political systems shared a face-to-face and oral culture

Both lacked strong a bureaucratic structure The “social glue” which held the political system

together was honor, patriotism and civic duty Ancient Athens and Rome provided a model for the

European Renaissance and the onset of modern thinking about democracy

But both societies favored the well-to-do and ignored the interests of the common people


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Modern liberalism and Social Contract theory


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The rise of liberalism The rise of liberalism in Continental Europe and

the British Isles was caused in large measure by the beginnings of the Industrial Revolution

Feudal concept of society which was comprised of 4 groups: monarchy, clergy, nobility, and serfs

Gradually, the rise of the concept of individualism replaced notion of divine right of kings

Rising commercial and entrepreneurial class challenged church, landowners and Medieval guild structure


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The rise of liberalism The idea of absolute monarchy began to be eroded

in England in 1215 with Magna Carta Beheading of Charles I in 1649

ended notion of divine right of kings Kings now forced to consult with

parliament which held real power With growth in urban areas as result of Industrial

Revolution, more people began to think in political terms and desire political participation


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The rise of liberalism The rise of liberalism and curtailing power of

the king was a result of economic growth Merchants and small industrialists could

now challenge the monarchy and landowners Guild system lost its ability to control

production in urban areas Parliament acquired ever more power, even

if its members were from prosperous classes


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The development of liberal ideas One of the key ideas of liberal thought was

the notion of the social contract This was a fiction upon which to base the

ideas of liberalism How could liberals explain and justify the

rights of individual subjects and the need of the sovereign (king) to heed their wishes?

Social contract theory was the answer


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The development of early liberal ideas Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) is best known

for his concept of the state of nature He argued all men wanted to escape this

state where life was “nasty, brutish and short” Hobbes argued that men exchanged the right

to live in a state of nature for the security they received from ceding authority to a sovereign

But unless the sovereign repressed his people, they could not challenge his authority


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The contributions of John Locke Hobbes’ system allowed citizens very little

room to challenge their ruler (the monarch) John Locke (1632-1704) – is known as the

“Father of Classic Liberalism” Locke gave citizens more rights than Hobbes With Hobbes, and other English and Scottish

liberals, Locke argued for limited government and the right to own private property


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The contributions of John Locke Locke affected Voltaire and Rousseau, and

Scottish Enlightenment thinkers such as Adam Smith, and American revolutionaries

Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison were some of the American thinkers affected by Locke’s writings

Unlike Hobbes, Locke believed that human nature was both tolerant and based in reason


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The fundamentals of liberal thought The rights of the individual (vs. the state) The natural equality of all men The idea of civil society – that public space where

citizens organize to pursue their mutual interests uncontrolled by the state

The idea that political authority is only legitimate when it is representative, namely based on the consent of the governed

That citizens have the right to do whatever they wish, unless it is explicitly forbidden by the law


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Communitarian liberal thought While Locke sought to reduce the state’s intrusion

into the citizen’s life, others viewed democratic thought in more activist terms

Rousseau (1712-1778) believed man reached his potential when he left the state of nature

But left on his own, man would not pursue liberty or democracy

For Rousseau, man had to be “forced to be free” through adhering to the “General Will”


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Communitarian liberal thought Rousseau wanted a more activist form of

government which worked for all of society He was one of the theorists of democracy to

challenge the idea of private property Rousseau wanted a state in which social

inequality is eliminated He differed from Locke who emphasizes

“negative liberty” and the individual, and avoids the concept of community


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John Locke

Three thinkers closely associatedwith the development of liberalism

Thomas Hobbes Jean-Jacques Rousseau


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What have we learned?


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How has the past affected the present? Two very different traditions inform the concept of

democracy Early Greek and Roman concepts were narrow in

scope and limited to the privileged elite Hobbes and Locke’s foremost task was to protect the

individual and expand his rights in relation to state Rousseau supported social democracy, where the

state actively involves itself in lessening inequality One idea of democracy is directed at the individual

while the other promotes community building


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Tensions in democratic thought What are the main tensions that confront the

institutions and processes of democracy? The tension between civic obligations and the

rights of the individual The tension between individual freedom and

the need for order and stability The tension between strong institutions and

the exercise of democratic freedoms and individual liberty


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Democracy between theory and practice The ancient Greeks laid the foundation for much

subsequent democratic theory Why is Greek thought still so relevant today? What are the contradictions of ancient Greek

political theory? If the polis excluded large numbers of its members,

in what sense was it democratic? Can democratic theory be derived from political

processes that are inherently undemocratic in nature?


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Republican concepts of democracy How did Republican thinkers respond to the

collapse of the Athenian polis? How do Republican thinkers today confront

the problem of order in democratic polities? How can the Republican form of democracy

insure that elected officials do not create a dictatorship?

Why does property loom so large in their thinking about democratic processes?


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Participation and democratic rule What type for political participation is required

to have democratic rule? How does the notion of participation among the

ancient Greeks differ from modern notions? What do citizens today owe their country? How does Rousseau’s notion of participation

infringe upon individual rights? How then do we reconcile the requirements of

civic engagement with individual liberty?


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Summary comments Critical to realize that democracy differs

over time and space in dramatic ways But democracy does have certain constants:

freedom, liberty, representative government, fair and periodic elections, accountability, transparency in decision-making, social inclusion, the rule of law, minority rights

Core debates today include the role of the state in everyday life – what should it be?


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Summary Comments II Is the government the friend or the enemy of the

people? Is it the solution or the problem? How can government serve the interests of its

citizenry without becoming an uncontrolled, bureaucratic Behemoth?

Should government be concerned with income inequality and expanding human rights, e.g., gay marriage?

Or is its role only that of the “night watchman state,” i.e., defending the nation, providing public works and insuring legal contracts are enforced?


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BibliographyDahl, Robert, On Democracy Held, David, Models of Democracy Hobbes, Thomas, LeviathanKramer, Sidney Noah, History Begins at SumerLocke, John, Two Treatises of GovernmentMcPherson, C.B., The Theory of Possessive IndividualismRousseau, Jean-Jacques, The Social Contract and Emile, or On EducationWolin, Sheldon, Politics and Vision

Department of Political Science Center for Middle Eastern Studies Rutgers University Why Democracy? The History and Development of a Concept Eric Davis.

Documents

concept of democracy

citizenry democracy

american democracy

democracy demo greek

imagination slide

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group of students

choice students