(855) 4-ESSAYS

Type a new keyword(s) and press Enter to search

Rousseau and an Alternative to Democracy

            Representative democracy is the most common model of government in all developed countries. It is not possible to talk about "representation " in democracy without having introduced the concept of liberal democracy. John Locke and Thomas Hobbes can be considered the fathers of the liberal doctrine. Since Hobbes "marks an interesting point of transition between a commitment to absolutism and the struggle of liberalism against tyranny " (Held: 2006, p. 59), it is more useful to look at Locke's philosophy, as it is the basis of the liberal tradition which is still present in the contemporary age (Held:2006, p.59). In the "Two treatises of government " Locke show a principle still valid in the contemporary society: people delegates their sovereignty as long as the government guarantees freedom and fundamental rights. Although the liberal principle is now adopted in almost every country, it should not be considered the only possible solution to govern. Contrarily, in fact, Jean-Jacques Rousseau in "The social contract " stated that there is no possibility for the people to delegate its power and be represented, since from that moment the power would no longer belong to the people itself who, at the same time, would lose its freedom. Consequently no representation is possible in Rousseau's society.
             In this essay I will define democracy focusing my attention on the representative model. Subsequently I will show how Rousseau challenges the main points of representative democracy, in order to better understand if the Social Contract is or is not a better alternative to the liberal conception of democracy. The notion of democracy has now really changed if it is considered the ancient meaning of this word. Thucydides in "The Peloponnesian war " perfectly shows the importance of Athens' democracy and its primary role among Greeks pòleis. The Greek ekklÃsia which represent the model of direct democracy was no more possible during the modern age.


Essays Related to Rousseau and an Alternative to Democracy

1. Social Contract Rousseau

Rousseau says that lawful political power does not exist in nature. ... "Might does not create right," explains Rousseau (Book I: III 173). ... In a society run by force, what Rousseau terms as "slavery," there is no room for freedom. ... Pure democracy, however, as the government of the state by which all the people in every detail, is not, as Rousseau says, a possible human institution. All governments are really mixed in character; and what we call a democracy is only a more or less democratic government. ...

  • Word Count: 7115
  • Approx Pages: 28
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

2. Social Contract

Rousseau says that lawful political power does not exist in nature. ... "Might does not create right," explains Rousseau (Book I: III 173). ... In a society run by force, what Rousseau terms as "slavery," there is no room for freedom. ... Pure democracy, however, as the government of the state by which all the people in every detail, is not, as Rousseau says, a possible human institution. All governments are really mixed in character; and what we call a democracy is only a more or less democratic government. ...

  • Word Count: 7114
  • Approx Pages: 28
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

3. Political Theory is Best Seen as a Conversation

And they have also offered alternatives, rebuttal and criticism to the work of their predecessors or sometimes of their contemporaries. ... Rousseau also uses Machiavelli, although in a different way. ... This can be seen with ideas introduced by such men as: Harrington, Hobbes, Filmer, Locke, Burke, Bacon, Voltaire, Rousseau, Bentham, and Mill. ... As Rousseau says at the start of Du Contrat social: If I were a prince or a legislator, I would not waste my time saying what has to be done. ... Rousseau is one of the few theorists to follow a contemporary example, that of his home city, Geneva....

  • Word Count: 1857
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

4. What is representative democracy? is its aim to promote or r

What is representative democracy? ... Firstly what representative democracy means and the different forms of it. ... Representative democracy is by definition "a democracy in which government is effected by elected representatives of the people. ... Mill would argue that there is "no desirable alternative to representative democracy". ... Rousseau on the other hand believed representation to be altogether impermissible. ...

  • Word Count: 1580
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: High School

5. The Illusion of Utopia

It is frequently acknowledged as the best political system in the world, especially among social democracies. ... French thinkers like Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu and Jean Jacques Rousseau dreamed of recreating the best aspects of former political systems through improving people. ... However, democracies must have friendship "for without friends no one would choose to live."" These Greeks and their ideas of virtuous communitarian democracy foreshadowed many beliefs later found in the Enlightenment. ... Alternatively, the Epicureans (among them, Heraclitus) sought hedon...

  • Word Count: 14382
  • Approx Pages: 58

6. Parliamentary or presidential government

Such a system, for example, briefly emerged under the radical democracy of Rousseau during the French Revolution. ... Most liberal democracies have adopted some form of parliamentary government. ... The principal alternative to a parliamentary system is a presidential system of government. ...

  • Word Count: 972
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

7. John Dewey

His work is concerned with a variety of fields ranging from psychology to political science and the synthesis of the liberal ideals of philosophers such as Rousseau and Herbert while adding the equally important aspect of practicality or utilitarianism. ... He also believed that to continue to build educational programs in such autocratic and repetitive ways would ultimately destroy the fundamental ideal of democracy. ... David Halliburton (1997)quotes Dewey on his views of environment as presented in "Democracy and Education" (1916): "Human nature exists and operates in an environment. ... H...

  • Word Count: 1697
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. Critical Thinking

This point is further emphasised by John Keane in his article The Media and Democracy. ... Moreover the authors emphasise the alternative notions of this approach as being part of a progressive method of the current media industry. ... This concept is similar to the theories of which Jean Jacques Rousseau argued during the enlightenment period (Russell, 1978: chapter XIX). ...

  • Word Count: 1551
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Graduate

Got a writing question? Ask our professional writer!
Submit My Question