21. Tocqueville

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheryl Welch
Keyword(s):  
Political Theory ◽  
Liberal Democracy ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Old Regime ◽  
The Third ◽  
Relevant Today ◽  
The Face ◽  
Democracy In America ◽  
The Revolution

This chapter examines Alexis de Tocqueville's social and political thought. Tocqueville is known as a forerunner of systematic social or political theory, but he is more relevant today as a philosophical historian with particular concerns that parallel those of many contemporary political thinkers. Those concerns are: how to sustain the civic practices underpinning liberal democracy, how to create such practices in the face of hostile histories, and how to think about democracy's need for stabilizing beliefs. The chapter considers the first concern through a discussion of some of the principal arguments of Tocqueville's Democracy in America, the second through an analysis of The Old Regime and the Revolution, and the third by considering the moral touchstones of Tocqueville's thought, in particular his arguments about religion and family. Tocqueville's views on tyranny, individualism, despotism, and aristocracy are also explored.

Carl Schmitt’s Political Theory of Dictatorship

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Duncan Kelly
Keyword(s):  
Political Theory ◽  
French Revolution ◽  
Liberal Democracy ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
General Analysis ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
The Political ◽  
Critical History ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter reconstructs the intellectual-historical background to Carl Schmitt’s well-known analysis of the problem of dictatorship and the powers of the Reichspräsident under the Weimar Constitution. The analysis focuses both on Schmitt’s wartime propaganda work, concerning a distinction between the state of siege and dictatorship, as well as on his more general analysis of modern German liberalism. It demonstrates why Schmitt attempted to produce a critical history of the history of modern political thought with the concept of dictatorship at its heart and how he came to distinguish between commissarial and sovereign forms of dictatorship to attack liberalism and liberal democracy. The chapter also focuses on the conceptual reworking of the relationship between legitimacy and dictatorship that Schmitt produced by interweaving the political thought of the Abbé Sieyès and the French Revolution into his basic rejection of contemporary liberal and socialist forms of politics.

Ecological Neutrality and Liberal Survivalism

2006 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcel Wissenburg
Keyword(s):  
Political Theory ◽  
Present Article ◽  
Liberal Democracy ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Political Theories ◽  
Over Time

AbstractPerhaps the most animated debate in green political thought-the subdiscipline of political theory devoted to the relations between humanity, politics and environment-addresses the question of the compatibility of ecologism and liberal democracy, more particularly the liberal aspects of the latter. The present article affirms and further elaborates earlier suggestions that existing approaches to this matter are either flawed or, when defensible, prone to produce trivial conclusions. Incompatibility of the two theories is always to be expected, in one form or another. It is argued that a characterization of political theories as families growing and changing over time, a notion partly derived from Wittgenstein’s family concept, allows us to understand ecologism and liberalism as evolving theories, and to anticipate the development of both-which may lead to far more surprising conclusions.

scholarly journals Buddhist Modernism Underway in Bhutan: Gross National Happiness and Buddhist Political Theory

Religions ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 297
Author(s):  
Jessica Locke
Keyword(s):  
Political Theory ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Ethnic Politics ◽  
Gross National Happiness ◽  
Political Literature ◽  
The Core ◽  
Buddhist Modernism ◽  
The Face ◽  
National Happiness ◽  
Constitutional Monarchy

This article synthesizes and clarifies the significance of the last half-century’s developments in Bhutan’s politics within the frame of Buddhist political thought. During this time, Bhutan has held a curious position in the international community, both celebrated as a Buddhist Shangri-La defending its culture in the face of globalized modernity, and at times, criticized for defending its heritage too conservatively at the expense of ethnic minorities’ human rights. In other words, Bhutan is praised for being anti-modern and illiberal and denounced for being anti-modern and illiberal. As an alternative to understanding Bhutan vis-à-vis this unhelpful schema, and in order to better grasp what exactly is underway in Bhutan’s political developments, I read Bhutan’s politics from within the tradition of Buddhist political literature. I argue that the theory of governance driving Bhutan’s politics is an example of Buddhist modernism—both ancient and modern, deeply Buddhist and yet manifestly inflected by western liberalism. To elucidate Bhutan’s contiguity with (and occasional departures from) the tradition of Buddhist political thought, I read two politically-themed Buddhist texts, Nāgārjuna’s Precious Garland and Mipham’s Treatise on Ethics for Kings, drawing out their most relevant points on Buddhist governance. I then use these themes as a lens for analyzing three significant political developments in Bhutan: its recent transition to constitutional monarchy, its signature policy of Gross National Happiness, and its fraught ethnic politics. Reading Bhutan’s politics in this manner reveals the extent to which Buddhist political thought is underway in this moment. Bhutan’s Buddhist-modernist theory of governance is a hybrid political tradition that evinces a lasting commitment to the core values of Buddhist political thought while at the same time being responsive to modern geopolitical and intellectual influences.

Tocqueville: Frenchman for all Seasons?Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, translated, edited, and with an introduction by Harvey C. Mansfield and Delba Winthrop. Chicago and London, University of Chicago Press, 2000. xciii, 722 pp. $35.00 U.S. (cloth).Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America and Two Essays on America, translated by Gerald Bevan, with an Introduction by Isaac Kramnick and Notes by Jeff Seliger. New York, N.Y., Penguin, 2003. lii, 896 pp. $10.00 U.S. (paper).Alexis de Tocqueville, The Old Regime and the Revolution, Vol.One, edited and with an introduction and critical apparatus by Francois Furet and Francoise Melonio; translated by Alan S. Kahan. Chicago and London, University of Chicago Press, 1998. xi, 451 pp. $32.50 U.S. (cloth).Tocqueville Between Two Worlds: The Making of a Political and Theoretical Life, by Sheldon Wolin. Princeton, Princeton University Press, 2001. viii, 650 pp. $35.00 U.S. (cloth).The Tocqueville Reader. A Life in Letters and Politics, edited by Olivier Zunz and Alan S. Kahan. Maiden, MA, Oxford, Melbourne, and Berlin, Blackwell Publishing, 2002. xviii, 358 pp. $24.95 U.S. (paper).Alexis de Tocqueville, Writings on Empire and Slavery, edited and translated by Jennifer Pitts. Baltimore and London, The Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001. xxxviii, 277 pp. $47.00 U.S. (cloth), $21.95 U.S. (paper).

2003 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 295-306
Author(s):  
Klaus J. Hansen
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Alexis De Tocqueville ◽  
University Of Chicago ◽  
Old Regime ◽  
Princeton University ◽  
Johns Hopkins University ◽  
Sheldon Wolin ◽  
Democracy In America ◽  
University Of Chicago Press ◽  
The Revolution

Tocqueville's Old Regime: Political History

1981 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-111
Author(s):  
Delba Winthrop
Keyword(s):  
William Shakespeare ◽  
Political History ◽  
Social Scientist ◽  
Alexis De Tocqueville ◽  
Old Regime ◽  
Social Existence ◽  
Universal Principles ◽  
Democracy In America ◽  
The Revolution

It has been said of Alexis de Tocqueville that he is the most frequently quoted and least read author of all, rivaling and surpassing even William Shakespeare for this dubious honor. Virtually every American social scientist who as much as pays lip service to tradition manages to quote Tocqueville at least once. But this deference is to the author of Democracy in America, not of The Old Regime and the Revolution, for the latter book is, with the exception of one passage, neither read nor quoted. The Old Regime is neglected today because it is a political history, and today political history is not appreciated. What is “political history”?Tocqueville's “political history” belongs to a genre of which he considered Montesquieu's “Sur la grandeur et la decadence des Romains” to be the finest example. Tocqueville thought that the nature and habits of his intellect suited him to evaluating modern societies and foreseeing their probable futures, but at the same time he believed he could do this most effectively in historical studies. While flatly denying that one can learn lessons from history in any simple sense, he did nonetheless hold that from an examination of historical particulars one can grasp the universal principles of social existence. His intention in writing The Old Regime was to enable his reader to achieve this same grasp. He, like Montesquieu, would not merely recount facts, but make known their causes and consequences and judge them. He would have to choose his facts well, so that they supported his theses. He would have to present them without making “the character of the work … visible” in the hope that “the reader would be conducted naturally from one reflection to another by the interest of the narrative.” Thus what I have called political history is understood by Tocqueville to be a selective, but not necessarily incorrect, use of the facts of history for the purposes of shedding light on the present and of teaching others to see and judge the present for themselves. Given Tocqueville's stated intention, we cannot read his work as either scientific history or political polemic.

5. Democracies, Democratization, and Authoritarian Regimes

Politics ◽  
2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Ferdinand ◽  
Robert Garner ◽  
Stephanie Lawson
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Liberal Democracy ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Authoritarian Regime ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
Analytical Models ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Face ◽  
Models Of Democracy

This chapter examines democracy and democratization in relation to authoritarian regimes. It begins with a discussion of the three ‘waves’ of democratization that have occurred worldwide since the nineteenth century, the third of which began in 1974 with the demise of the long-standing authoritarian regime in Portugal, followed by the end of Franco's dictatorship in Spain in 1975. The chapter goes on to consider the main approaches to analysing democratization, different analytical models of democracy such as polyarchy and liberal democracy, and indexes to measure democracy. It also reviews the more recent literature on authoritarianism and the reasons for its persistence before concluding with an assessment of the challenges that confront democracy in the face of authoritarian revival.

FIAT IUSTITIA, PEREAT MUNDUS: IMMANUEL KANT, FRIEDRICH GENTZ, AND THE POSSIBILITY OF PRUDENTIAL ENLIGHTENMENT

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
JONATHAN GREEN
Keyword(s):  
Immanuel Kant ◽  
French Revolution ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Normative Theory ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Pure Reason ◽  
German Version ◽  
Perpetual Peace ◽  
The Face ◽  
The Revolution

Since the early twentieth century, historians of political thought have read Immanuel Kant's interventions into debates over the French Revolution—his essay on “Theory and Practice” (1795), and his tract on Perpetual Peace (1793)—against Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790). Kant is said to have upheld the sovereignty of pure reason for political practice, over and against Burke's stubborn traditionalism. What this dichotomy ignores, however, is that Kant's first public comments on the Revolution were directed not against Burke's Reflections, but against a heavily edited German version of the text published in 1793 by Kant's former student, Friedrich Gentz (1764–1832). The central thrust of Gentz's translation was that while Kant's normative theory of politics was admirable, it needed to be complemented with a prudential grasp of statecraft in order to be made practicable. Without prudence, the rights of man would remain an empty ideal. In responding to Gentz, Kant entered into a debate over whether philosophical reason and political prudence are mutually compatible. His dogmatic refusal to endorse such an alliance, even in the face of the Terror, places his political thought in an unfavourable light.

scholarly journals Political Science in the Legacy of Classical Islamic Literature

1990 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-14
Author(s):  
Taha J. Al Alwani
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Political Theory ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Political Development ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
The Past ◽  
Relevant Today ◽  
Political Analysis ◽  
History Of ◽  
Development Methods

In my own limited knowledge I know of no specialized studies in ourclassical legacy which could be described today as political thought, or astreatises on political systems, international relations, systems of government,the history of diplomacy, political development, methods of political analysis,political theory, political planning, or any of the other categories currentlystudied as a part of contemporary knowledge.Nonetheless, many of the issues discussed on these subjects were treatedin the classical legacy through the medium of fiqh (laws of Islam), whichin its long history touched upon many of the subjects studied today in thesocial sciences. Likewise, many of the questions dealt with in the field ofpolitical science were addressed by the early scholars of Islam within theframework of their writings on classical Fiqh of al Ahkam al Sultaniyah (thePrecepts of Power). Perhaps the book written by Shaykh Ibn Taymiyah, alSiyasah al Shar’iyah, was one of the most distinctive efforts in this directionas well as the book by al Khatib al Iskafi, Lutf al Tadbir, which also dealtwith certain issues which remain relevant today. Similar to such works areSuluk al Malik Fi Tadbir al Mamalik, Bada’i al-Silk, and others.These works show that the meaning of politics to the Muslim mind, andas envisioned by Islam, involves making arrangements for mankind inaccordance with the values prescribed by Allah (SWT) for the realizationof His purposes in creation, and in fulfillment of the trust of vicegerency,the duties of civilization, and the responsibility of the Ummah to act as awitness unto all mankind in its capacity as the “Middlemost Nation.”“Making arrangements” includes reading the past and learning its lessonsas well as interpreting, understanding, and analyzing the present in the lightof those lessons. Other elements included in “making arrangements” areplanning for the future and benefiting from all scientific knowledge that clarifies ...

Tocqueville in English

1999 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 148-155
Author(s):  
Jon Elster
Keyword(s):  
English Translation ◽  
French Language ◽  
University Of Chicago ◽  
Old Regime ◽  
Democracy In America ◽  
University Of Chicago Press ◽  
Or History ◽  
The Revolution

Tocqueville's two major works, Democracy in America and The Old regime and the revolution, have fared very differently in English translation. The Lawrence translation of Democracy in America is essentially accurate, except for a handful of mistakes. The classical translation by Gilbert of The Old Regime was excessively free and rhetorical, but did not betray lack of understanding of French language or history. A new translation published by University of Chicago Press suffers from the opposite flaws. While trying to follow the original very closely, the translator got many things wrong because of a demonstrable lack of proficiency in French.

FRENCH LIBERALISM’S “INDIAN DETOUR”: LOUIS DUMONT, THE INDIVIDUAL, AND LIBERAL POLITICAL THOUGHT IN POST-1968 FRANCE

2014 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 685-710
Author(s):  
JACOB COLLINS
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Political Culture ◽  
Political Theory ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Modern State ◽  
Intellectual Tradition ◽  
Economic Issues ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Revolution

Liberalism in France has typically been concerned with political, rather than economic, issues. Its classic texts—those of Constant, Guizot, and Tocqueville—were written in the aftermath of the Revolution, and reflected on the historical and political problems that grew out of it: the nature of the modern state, the rights and duties of the individual, and the nexus of institutions that mediated their relationship. These writings defined the contours of modern French liberalism, and became a key resource for thinkers in the late 1970s, notably Pierre Rosanvallon and Marcel Gauchet, who were looking for ways to revitalize the liberal-democratic project. In his 1985 study of Guizot, Rosanvallon could regret that “the question of liberalism in French political culture of the nineteenth century is ‘missing’ in contemporary thought.”1 If the task of political theory was to recover this intellectual tradition, what were the terms of the recovery? Which ideas were missing from the conceptual landscape of the 1970s to inspire it?

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